The Greatest Threat
by Avatarcatz2323
Summary: The Furious Five and Po embark on an epic adventure to thwart the evil plans of a secretive gang. However, they soon learn of a dangerous weapon that their enemies have. Their foes now having the advantage, can the warriors stop them? SOON TO BE SLIGHTLY REVISED FOR IMPROVEMENT!
1. Prologue

_**IMPORTANT NOTE:**_** This story will be slightly revised soon. I'm doing it to make sure that my stories achieve their full potential!**

**Title: The Greatest Threat  
>Rated: T – for violence and (slight) blood.<br>Genres: Suspense/Adventure  
>Set: About two months after Kung Fu Panda 2.<br>Summary: The Furious Five and Po embark on an epic adventure to thwart the evil plans of a secretive gang. However, they soon learn of a dangerous weapon that their enemies have. Their foes now having the advantage, can the warriors stop them?**

**Okay, I couldn't help but write this. I recently watched Kung Fu Panda 2, and it's now my favorite movie by far! So I just couldn't help but write something pertaining to my favorite show! Anyway, I hope that you enjoy!**

**This story will switch from Tigress' to Po's point of view at each line break. Does that make sense? This chapter will start in Tigress' POV and has been (slightly) revised!**

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><p>I jumped over a fox as it lunged at me, fangs bared. I simply twisted and in mid-air sent the dog into the wall with a flying kick to its jaw. I landed on one paw and turned to face my next opponent, lowering myself enough for my other hind paw to touch the ground.<p>

Two more foxes came at me, their sharp claws gleaming in the bright sunlight. Growling, I kept my claws sheathed and waited for them to come to me.

They struck at me, and I easily evaded their claws and teeth. I countered the stronger of the two by sidestepping an attack and striking. I hit his stomach with my fist hard, and he fell backward with a yelp of surprise and pain. The last of the two kicked at my head; I dodged his foot and kicked him with my own. He doubled over in agony, clutching his head as he went down.

The foxes weren't hard to defeat, as they were not very skilled in Kung Fu. But there were at least thirty of them, and their leader had been fighting Po for several minutes now. Any battle that took that long had to consist of two masters.

I snarled angrily at the three that came at me. I blocked two attacks and knocked one fox unconscious. The other two seemed harder and more skilled than the others I had fought. One of them held a sword, its razor-sharp blade reflecting its owner almost perfectly. I soon defeated the second, and the third ran at me, his sword raised in preparation for attack. I focused on dodging the blade until he left himself unprotected.

Fast as lightning, I jumped and twisted while wrapping my legs around the long hilt of the sword, yanking it from the fox's grasp as I landed. I discarded the sword by throwing it at the fox. He ducked as the sword flew over his head and into a tree, then he proceeded to charge me.

It soon became apparent that, while he was skilled with the sword, he knew hardly anything about how to fight with his paws; he was defeated with a hard kick to his stomach.

Suddenly I heard a familiar sound, and I quickly jumped out of the way as several arrows struck the dirt that I had been standing on moments before. I speedily located the archers; there were eight of them perched in the nearby trees.

"Archers!" I shouted, successfully alerting my friends of the danger.

I watched as Mantis swiftly took out a fox, before deciding that I should eliminate the threat.

I darted to the nearest occupied tree, launching myself onto a high branch. The archer on that branch turned to face me, his lips drawn back in a snarl. I easily threw him out of the tree. I heard more arrows behind me as they were fired, and I quickly jumped into another tree. I climbed up until I was level with another archer. He was taken out with a punch to his face.

Suddenly the branch I was on gave way and I fell ten feet to the hard ground below. I landed on all fours, and as I rose to my feet, three foxes surrounded me, all of them wielding swords. They came at me together, and I smirked; that was the dumbest thing they could've done.

I jumped at the last second, and they crashed into each other. I turned away from the scene and sprinted to yet another tree. I surprised the archer by snapping the branch under his feet and kicking him as me plummeted; he fell into another fox that was attacking Viper.

I took out three more archers before dropping back to the dirt. My eyes widened when I saw that Po was losing the fight with the leader. I instantly saw why. Ten other foxes surrounded Po, each one attacking him relentlessly. I looked around desperately before realizing the problem; foxes simply kept coming through the trees, increasing their numbers constantly and dramatically. Viper was battling six, Monkey seven, Mantis five, and Crane had the archers focused on him. I noticed sourly that the archers had been replenished; there were now six of them. I looked back at Po; he had taken two out, but eight still remained. He was sorely outnumbered, and I noted the long cut that ran down his arm.

I roared, enraged, and ran at them. Five of the eight were distracted by me, and they charged, swords ready. In my fury I easily defeated two of them. I jumped and did the splits in mid-air, taking out another two. The last one came at me with a fierce growl. I dodged his sword and delivered several fast, well-placed punches to his chest; he fell back onto the ground.

I narrowed my eyes as six more foxes ran at me, three with swords and two with hammers.

I sprinted to a tree and, running up the trunk as they came near me, jumped off of it. I performed a backflip, and landed on the other side of the dogs. By the time they turned I had already taken one out, and the remaining five faced me, snarling.

It didn't take long to bring four of them down, but the last one proved to be tougher. A _lot _tougher.

I ducked under his blade and swung my leg at his feet; he jumped over it and jabbed at me with his sword. I growled as the blade came an inch away from me as I evaded, almost brushing my fur against the edge. Furious, he brandished his weapon several times, but I managed to escape his every strike.

Finally, I rolled away from him before launching myself at the nearest tree. Grabbing the closest branch to me, I shifted my weight in such a way that I was soon swinging. When I felt that I was going high enough, I let go, flinging myself at the skilled fox.

He didn't react fast enough when he saw what I was doing; I landed on him, my feet against his chest. My momentum was strong enough to send us to a tree several feet away. I pushed off of him and back-flipped, landing on my back paws.

Panting slightly from the long fight, I heard a weird noise and turned just in time to receive a punch to my face.

Stumbling back from the force of the blow, I struggled to remain standing, and I shook my head to clear it when I regained my balance.

My eyes widened when I saw that the fox that had punched me was the leader. _Then where's Po…! _I noticed that he was still fighting several skilled foxes; he must not have noticed the leader coming toward me.

"So, I see that you are quite skilled," she said, her voice melodic but threatening. "Almost more than the Dragon Warrior."

"What do you want?" I questioned, my tone harsh.

"Oh, you shall see," she replied. "You have defeated one of my best, now we will see how well you do against me!"

She lunged at me; I blocked her foot easily. But I knew that it was not wise at all to underestimate your opponent, so I wasn't surprised when she abruptly started kicking and punching at me in rapid succession.

I simply evaded her attacks, waiting for a good chance to strike. Her fist swung over my head; now was the right time. I struck, but she seized my wrist and twisted. I was flung over her and she let go. I managed to land on my feet, but it took me a second to regain my balance.

Growling, I ran around her on all fours, waiting for her next move. She simply watched me, turning her body so that she could see me completely at all times.

Suddenly she pounced at me, fangs bared. I stopped and rolled; she landed where I'd been on her back paws. I jumped at her, and she lunged at me. We met in mid-air, wrestling with each other as we fell. I barely dodged her attacks and managed to punch her jaw, hard. She yelped and I kicked her away from me, flipping through the air and landing smoothly. She landed on her back, but soon regained her composure and flipped onto her feet.

I got ready for her next attack as she faced me, fury showing plainly in her eyes. We stared tensely at each other for a few minutes before she sprang back into action. I evaded her swift kicks and punches while adding a few attacks of my own; she only hit me once, on my left shoulder, while I had already hit her four times; on her stomach, face, knee, and neck.

She managed to send a solid kick to my stomach before stumbling away, panting hard. I steadied my breathing and walked up to her, ready for her to start fighting again.

She shrank away from me, but I just kept walking toward her.

"I underestimated you," she said dryly. "But I will not make the same mistake twice. Try to foil my plans again, and you are dead meat."

Suddenly she barked loudly three times, and ran past me. I saw her claws too late, and I instinctively lunged at her with a roar of fury.

But her barking had signaled all the rest of the foxes, and they were soon stampeding off and into the trees. I managed to kick and punch a few as they ran past, put there were too many of them, so I just ducked and covered my head as they jumped over and around me like scared deer.

It didn't take long for them to escape; there were only twenty of them still running, and they were moving fast.

"Tigress, are you okay?" Viper asked as she slithered up to me, eyeing the four shallow cuts that were left from the leaders' claws.

"I'm fine," I answered, covering the marks with my right paw.

I sighed as Po came up to me, noticing how I was covering my left arm. "Whoa, Tigress, you okay?"

"I am fine," I replied sternly, staring him down to the point that I knew he would not ask any more questions.

"Uh… okay…" Po gave me a weird look.

"Are _you _okay, Po?" Monkey asked as he came up to us, looking worriedly at the cut that ran along his arm.

"Oh yeah. It doesn't really hurt anymore, anyway." I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. It was obvious that he was lying, but I didn't speak what I thought.

"Ugh, those archers were pretty good!"

We looked up at Crane as he landed roughly, panting.

"I can see that they didn't hit you though!" Po mentioned enthusiastically.

Crane chuckled. "They got close enough," he muttered.

"We should get back." Mantis hopped onto Monkey's shoulder. "It's getting dark."

"And I'm starving!" Po added, his stomach rumbling.

"Don't worry Po, we'll get back in time for dinner," Viper assured.

"I sure hope so…" We started back through the valley we had come through to get to the abandoned village.

It was still a large mystery as to why the large gang of foxes had ransacked such a deserted place, but Shifu had sent us to stop them anyway, saying that 'they might come to attack other villages as well'. So, of course, we had taken the ten-minute journey to the abandoned village.

Now, I understood what Shifu meant. While some of the foxes had been easy to defeat, a lot of them were not, especially the leader. If they had attacked a populated village, they could've caused a lot of havoc and destruction.

Five minutes away from the Jade Palace, Po was already slowing down and panting.

"Ugh… hey! Wait… wait up!" he called to us. Sighing, I slowed to a stop and waited for him to catch up. The others followed suit. When he caught up, he panted, "Can we… ugh, can we stop for a minute?"

"Fine," I answered. "But not for long."

Po sat back, breathing hard. "Thanks."

I shook my head in slight amusement and remained standing.

"So, uh, where did the leader go in the battle?" Po started. I turned my attention to him as he continued. "When I was ready to fight her, she disappeared."

"I fought her," I responded, watching his reaction. His eyes widened.

"Is that how you got those… scratches?" he asked, pointing to the four shallow cuts. I briefly glanced at them before answering, "Yes."

"But you beat her, right?"

"Yes," I replied again, resisting the urge to cover the cuts with my paw.

"How's your arm doing?" Viper inquired, her question directed at Po.

"Ah, it's fine." He shrugged. "At least it doesn't really hurt anymore." Standing, he faced the direction that we needed to go and his enthusiasm returned. "Alright, I'm ready! Let's go!"

I rolled my eyes and followed him on all fours and he jogged, quickly catching up to him. I slowed my pace enough to match his, and the others did the same.

We ran side-by-side until we could see the Jade Palace. I stood as we slowed to a walk.

The full moon was in the sky and the sun's rays of light were fading fast; most of the town was already asleep.

We walked through the town and to the bottom of the enormous staircase. Po sighed before starting up them. I bounded past him and up the many stairs, ignoring his grunts of effort as he tried to run up the stairs. I looked back in time to see him trip and almost fall, if Crane hadn't caught him.

Crane carried Po up about twenty steps before setting him down, panting from the effort it took to lift the heavy panda.

Shaking my head in amusement, I helped Po up the rest of the way when he needed it until we finally reached the top.

"Whoo! Yeah! Ugh… I've always hated those stairs," Po said and he tried to catch his breath.

"You're faster than you were before though," Crane commented. Po smiled at his words, and then stretched.

"Ohhhkay, I feel better now," he reported, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand.

"Come on, we've got to tell Master Shifu what happened," Viper reminded us, slithering past the gates and to the Palace. We followed her through the door and into the Palace.

It took a few minutes, but we found Master Shifu meditating in the dragon cave where he learned Inner Peace.

"Master Shifu!" Po almost shouted. "Master Shifu, we defeated the foxes!"

"They were foxes?" Shifu asked as he turned to face us.

"Yeah, and there were tons of them!"

"They ran off when the leader was defeated," I reported quickly before Po could go on about the fight. "She called off the foxes and ran away with them."

"Do you know if the gang of foxes has a name?"

"I'm sure they do, but we don't know it," I answered truthfully.

"Hmm…" Shifu drifted off, thinking. "I'm sure that they'll be back. I'll see what I can find about these foxes. You all should eat and get some sleep."

We nodded, bowed respectfully to him and walked the short distance back to the Jade Palace. There, Po cooked noodles and we ate a late dinner. We didn't talk much, as each of us were in our own thoughts.

As soon as we were done eating, we walked down the hall and separated to our rooms.

"Goodnight everyone!" Po said happily. "Hopefully we have a good day tomorrow."

"Yeah," Crane muttered. "Maybe those foxes won't come back for a while."

_Yeah, right, _I thought sourly. The chances of them coming back were 99 out of 100.

I laid back on my bed, feeling restless despite my fatigue.

I sat up straight when my door slid open, but relaxed when Shifu walked through the doorway.

"How is your arm?" he inquired, closing the thin door behind him as he walked up to me.

"It's fine," I assured him.

He came up to me and I obediently lowered my left arm so he could examine the cuts. "They don't hurt at all."

Shifu didn't respond as he looked over the marks. His eyes widened, and his tone was worried when he asked, "What made these?"

"The leader fox. She just scratched me," I answered, frowning. "What's wrong?"

"A fox's claws are never this sharp. Did you see her claws?"

"No… She was too fast." I watched as he continued examining the cuts.

"She must have had something on her claws," Shifu said. "Otherwise, it would be almost impossible for her to cut you like this."

I remained silent as he let my paw go. I allowed my arm to simply drop to my side.

"So…" I trailed off, thinking about what to say next. "It's not lethal, is it? I mean, it's just a few cuts."

"A few deep cuts," Shifu amended, giving me a serious look. "Tigress, be very careful from now on. She went only for your arm this time, but next time she could aim for somewhere more dangerous."

"Okay," I responded, glancing down at the cuts.

"Good night," Shifu said as he left my room. "And remember to be careful from now on." The doors slid shut.

I stared at the doors, curious at his sudden deep concern and wondering why I hadn't paid more attention to the fox's claws. Sighing, I laid back onto my bed and eventually fell into a dreamless sleep.

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><p>I woke to someone shaking my injured arm, jarring me awake almost instantly.<p>

"Ow! Hey, why…" I trailed off when I saw that it was Shifu who had woken me.

"Master Shifu!" I exclaimed. "What is it? Bandits? Those foxes again? Whoever it is will be—"

"Po," Shifu interrupted. "Nothing is wrong. I just came to check on your arm."

"Oh…" I watched as he examined the long cut.

"Who or what did this to you?"

"Just one of the skilled foxes that got lucky when he swung his sword," I answered sincerely.

"Okay, it's nothing too bad. Let me just cover it." He left and returned two minutes later. I waited patiently while he wrapped some tan cloth around my arm, concealing the cut under the light material.

"There," Master Shifu said, stepping back. "You should rest now."

"What about Tigress? She got cut too, I think."

"I have already checked on her. She's fine." Shifu walked to the closed door. "Good night, Dragon Warrior."

"Good night," I replied, watching as he opened and walked out the door, closing it behind him.

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><p><strong>I believe that this is the longest prologue I've ever written! Hooray!<strong>

**And I wonder what the leader fox is planning… hmmmm….**

**Anyway, thanks for reading! Please leave a review! It would be much appreciated, and it helps motivate me.**

**Interestingly enough, I had originally planned this to be an oneshot, and a tragedy. Somehow, it turned into this. *shrugs* All well, I'm happy with how it turned out!**

**5/30/13**


	2. Information

_**IMPORTANT NOTE:**_** This story will be slightly revised soon. I'm doing it to make sure that my stories achieve their full potential!**

_**This chapter has been**_** revised.**

**Disclaimer: I do **_**not **_**own Kung Fu Panda, or any of its characters. DreamWorks owns it all!**

**Okay, just to clear this up; I very dislike the Tigress/Po pairing; you will not see anything pertaining to that in this story. I just have the POV switch from Tigress to Po (and vice versa) because they're the main characters in the Kung Fu Panda movies.**

**This chapter starts in Tigress' POV. Enjoy!**

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><p>I leapt over a spiked club, landing on the moving floor and turning to punch the club. It broke instantly, splitting into hundreds of splinters that I dodged skillfully.<p>

I barely noticed the others as they trained; my focus was completely on the swinging clubs and the thick wood-filled tubes that were constantly moving under my feet.

I broke another one, and then it was time to switch exercises. There was no bell to signal the change; I knew the times by heart because I'd been doing this for so long.

I jumped into the midst of 'Croc Tails', as Po called them. I ducked under a high one, then kicked a lower tail, causing it to abruptly spin the other direction. I punched the center of one, breaking it. The two halves of the tail hit another mechanism, destroying it.

I refrained from taking out too many more, and I eventually went to the next exercise. This routine continued until we were done with the exercises.

I jumped off of the 'Turtle Bowl of Balance', as Po named it, and landed gracefully on all fours. I rose and turned to watch the others finish their exercises, and we were soon heading to the kitchen for lunch.

The week had gone normally besides the unusual fight that had happened with the gang of foxes yesterday. None of us had seen Shifu since last night, and the foxes had not made another appearance since.

After lunch, we talked. Shifu was usually around to give us something to do, but because he didn't seem to be around, we didn't really know what to do.

"So, uh…" Mantis began, trying to start a conversation. "We really kicked those foxes' butts yesterday, right?"

I nodded slightly in response, slightly amused at his fail to converse.

"Yeah," Crane agreed halfheartedly. "I wonder who they are…"

"There are really only two ways to find that out." We all turned to Shifu, surprised that he was here.

"You ask them, or you research them," he continued, walking through the open doors, Oogway's staff clinking softly on the floor. "Unfortunately, researching them did not work. I have found only one record of a gang of foxes, but they are not it. You must find out by questioning the foxes." We nodded in understanding. That shouldn't be too hard.

"Meanwhile, we must be careful around these foxes as well. If they have any relation to the ancient gang of foxes, then we will have an enormous battle ahead of us," Shifu said gravely.

"If you don't mind my asking, who are the 'Ancient Gang of Foxes' that you're talking about?" Po inquired.

"They were called the Crimson Knights," Shifu answered. "If you want to learn more, research it."

"Okay…" Po replied, his voice trailing off.

"I'll be in the Dragon Cave if you need me," Shifu told us, walking out of the kitchen.

We exchanged glances before I stood and left the kitchen. I thought about following Shifu before discarding the idea and heading toward the library. Once there I searched the shelves until I found what I was looking for.

I sat at a table and opened the book, glimpsing the title again. The title of the book was _China's Worst Criminals; The Wu Sisters and The Crimson Knights._

I flipped through the pages, passing the story of the Wu Sisters to find the story of the Crimson Knights. As soon as I found it, I started reading;

_The History of the Crimson Knights__  
><em>_The Crimson Knights were once the greatest Kung Fu warriors in China. They protected each city, and were very loyal to their master. They were all foxes, but their master was always a different animal. They never disobeyed him or her, but that loyalty wavered when their formal master died and was replaced. She eventually gained their trust, and soon they obeyed her every command._

_However, their new master was slowly turning evil and succumbing to the power that was placed in her grasp. They never realized until it was too late._

_It did not take long for them to start stealing and destroying. Finally, Grand Master Oogway and his highly trained army of Kung Fu warriors were able to battle against the Crimson Knights. Many warriors on both sides were killed, but the Crimson Knights were finally beaten. Master Oogway banished them from China, but what young Master Oogway did not suspect was that the Crimson Knights were raising another army on the other side of the world._

_The Crimson Knights arose in power again, and they captured many cities before they were stopped by Masters Rhino, Croc, Ox, and Oogway. They faced the leaders of the Crimson Knights while their army kept the rest of the Crimson Knights at bay. It was a long and gruesome battle, but Master Oogway and his army finally vanquished the Crimson Knights._

_There are many rumors that the Crimson Knights are again rising in power, and that they will return._

I stared at the page, mystified. Why hadn't Shifu told us about the Crimson Knights before? Although, he had never told us about the Wu Sisters, either. I had only learned about the trio of cats from Po, although I knew from experience that a lot of his information was probably a little off from what really happened.

I closed the book and stood. Walking over to the shelf where I'd found the book, I started searching for any more information about them.

I didn't find anything more than I already knew so after hours of looking I finally went to bed.

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>(AN: This is a time break. It's still in Tigress' POV, but this is just a while later)<strong>

I woke to the sound of the alarm bell ringing. I bolted upright and, rubbing the remaining sleep from my eyes, ran out of my room, down the hall and made my way to the outside of the Jade Palace where Shifu would be waiting for us.

I ran on all fours, gaining speed as I finally reached the doors that lead outside. Pulling them open, I instantly spotted Shifu standing in front of the now-opened doors.

The others soon joined me, and we bowed to Shifu.

"Master Shifu, what's wrong?" I asked, looking down at the red panda.

"I believe it is those foxes again, but this time they are attacking a populated village. You must hurry!" Shifu told us where the village was, and we immediately began our run.

Po quickly fell behind, as he wasn't very fast at all, so we had to slow for him often. It only took about three minutes to reach this village; it was much closer than the last one.

The second I heard the terrified screams of villagers, rage rose within me; I could not tolerate the suffering of victims.

"Let's go!" I shouted to the others, now at full sprint.

I stopped on top of a roof to observe what was happening.

Sure enough, foxes were everywhere, most of them tormenting rabbits, geese, and pigs. I even saw a few civilians with scratches and cuts.

I growled and, with a roar, launched myself off of the roof and into the midst of foxes.

With a startled shout they all turned their attention to me and my friends; their prey and sick ways of entertainment forgotten.

They split into six groups, the largest of which was heading for Po. I snarled at the ones coming for me, and then the battle commenced.

I ducked under a blade and knocked a fox out with a solid kick to his face before swinging around and punching another fox. I jumped out of the way as the four remaining foxes brandished their swords and hammers.

I grabbed one's sword as it came at my neck, twisting it and maintaining the momentum in a way that it lodged itself into a wooden building. I turned and dodged another blade just in time. I punched the fox's wrist, forcing his weapon from his grasp. I then proceeded to kick his chest, sending him backward and into another fox as he fell.

The last two foxes glanced at each other before coming at me, their swords raised in preparation to strike. As they did so I rolled to the side and jumped, landing in between the two. Without thinking they struck at me; I ducked and averted my eyes as they knocked each other out.

Suddenly something landed in front of me; I squinted until the temporary and thin dust cleared. My eyes widened when the leader fox jumped out of the dust, claws extended. I ducked under her paw and kicked, hitting the fox as she didn't react in time.

As she regained her composure, I looked closely at her claws. My eyes widened further when I saw the metal covering her claws, making them sharper and causing them to have a more intimidating appearance.

She coughed and got to her feet and I lunged at her. We exchanged blows, both of us evading and attacking each other. Both of our breaths were soon labored, hers more so than mine.

With a snarl I finally hit her, my fist connecting with her stomach. She fell back with a yowl of pain. Trying to steady my breathing, I walked up to her.

"Who are you?" I questioned, my fist raised.

"That does not concern you," she replied sternly, getting up and brushing herself off.

"Then what is the name of your 'Gang'?"

"That information I can share. We are the Crimson Blade! All shall fear us; we will rule everything!" I responded by punching at her angrily. She failed to block my fist and fell onto her back, clutching her head.

"You will pay for that!" she yelled, immediately jumping up and striking at me. I nimbly dodged her anger-fueled attacks, her fury making her actions powerful but clumsy. I soon noticed that she was trying to cut me again, and I quickly realized why.

On her metal-covered claws was a thin layer of nearly transparent, mostly hardened fluid. I sniffed, and I instantly recognized the smell thanks to specific training.

Poison.

After this realization I did everything I could to avoid her claws, knowing full well what would happen if she scratched me.

I ducked and twisted, evading her swipes. When I found an opportunity, I took it. She fell back as I kicked her stomach, causing her to yelp in pain.

"Poison?" I questioned, glaring at her.

"Yes," she growled, panting. "It's quite strong, too."

"How strong?" I inquired, feeling the fur on my back rising in anger and panic as I thought about the scratches on my arm.

"I know what you're thinking and I'll give you some relief; I didn't have the poison the last time we fought. But now I have it." She stood. "And it's quite painful, by the way."

She suddenly lunged at me, claws extended. I jumped backward, narrowly avoiding her claws as they brushed my fur.

She snarled in fury and came at me again and again. I dodged as best as I could, but she kept getting closer with each strike.

I abruptly jumped over her, landing and turning to kick her back. I hit her, and she fell backward from the force of my kick. I noticed that she was only ten feet from the edge of a cliff, its steep, sheer face making it clear that the distance beneath it was great.

I ran at the leader, and before she could fully regain her balance, sent her flying back with a hard kick to her stomach. I repeated this until, finally, she was only two feet from the edge.

Unfortunately, she noticed the cliff at that moment. The anger on her face transformed to realization, and then back to anger. I went at her again, but was confused when her expression changed into triumph.

My confusion melted into terror when she suddenly moved lightning fast, seizing my foot and twisting. She let go, and I found myself behind hurtled over the edge of the large cliff.

I quickly searched for something that could stop my fall. I grabbed onto a weak branch, swinging myself up and releasing it as it broke. I extended my claws, burying them into the rough dirt that was on the edge.

Panting, I started lifting myself up, but was stopped as the fox leader stood above me, a smirk on her face.

She abruptly grabbed the back of my shirt and pulled, sending me into the air.

I was able to stem my shock a second before I landed, but I was off balance when I hit the ground.

"Why—" I was cut off as she suddenly came forward. I had no time to react.

I snarled with pain as her claws tore through my fur and skin; I fell back, clutching my stomach.

"Maybe now you and your pathetic friends will fear us," the leader growled, barking three times and running away, her entire gang following her closely.

I shook my head as my vision abruptly blurred; I looked down at the four new cuts on my stomach. Blood stained my fur, and I realized that the fox was right; the poison was strong.

And it was already starting to kill me.

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><p>I delivered a punch to a fox's face as it passed me, causing it to fly backward and into a nearby wall. It slumped to the ground, unconscious.<p>

The foxes were all fleeing again; the leader must have been defeated.

I happily walked over to my friends, but my good mood was instantly shattered when I saw Tigress. She was kneeling on the ground, her front paws stained with red. My eyes widened in horror when I realized that it was _her _blood.

Four nasty-looking cuts ran across her stomach, starting from her right side and ending at her left.

"Tigress…" My voice trailed off. "Tigress, are you okay?"

"No…" she answered. I stared at her, terrified; if she was saying 'no' something was horribly wrong.

Her words were slightly slurred when she spoke next. "The leader… she got me. On her claws… she coated them with poison."

"What?" I exclaimed, horrified. The rest of the Furious Five soon came up to us.

"What on Earth happened?" Crane asked. I glanced at him.

"Crane, you have to get Master Shifu!" I instructed. "Just tell him that Tigress is, uh, poisoned!" I felt like I was just listening to the words, not saying them. How could this have happened?

Crane's eyes widened but he flew off without a word. Viper, Mantis, and Monkey were watching Tigress carefully, fear in their eyes.

Tigress looked back at us, rage in her eyes. We all knew that her anger was not directed at us but at the leader of the foxes.

Tigress stood, and started shakily walking toward the Jade Palace.

"Whoa, where are you going?" I inquired, panicked.

"Where do you think? The closer we can get to the Palace, the easier it'll be for Master Shifu to reach us," Tigress replied, glancing at me before focusing on walking again. She seemed to have gotten some of her vigor back; her words weren't as disconnected and hesitant as before.

"Oh." I followed her, wondering how I could help. "Uh… is there, um… is there anything I, er, we can do to help?"

She sighed. "As much as I hate to ask for help… I know that I can't make it alone," she responded. "I guess you can help me."

Worried about her, I awkwardly placed a paw on her shoulder, trying to steady her. She looked at me briefly and I glimpsed something in her eyes I had never seen there before.

Fear.

* * *

><p>I quickly looked away from Po, realizing that my fear might have shown. I grimaced inwardly when Po shifted his hand; he had seen it. The fear I felt that might actually die. The fear of the leader of the Crimson Blade. The fear that one of my friends was going to die because of a mistake I made.<p>

The poison was stronger than I had first thought; it was gradually weakening me, and it sent pain through me with every movement I made. The pain didn't slow me, but the blood I had lost and the effects of the poison were making me drowsy and weak. I shook my head, trying to get rid of some of the drowsiness, but the movement only made the pain worse.

Not only that, but dizziness was also becoming a part of the problem. I growled softly at myself. Po gave me another worried look.

My ears perked up as I heard the sound of Crane's wings flapping. I watched him as he landed, Shifu jumping off of his back and running over to me.

"What happened?" he asked, pulling my hands away from my stomach. I winced as Shifu looked over the cuts.

Trying to focus, I explained, "The leader of the foxes is smarter than I thought. She hit me again, but this time she coated her claws in poison." Shifu glanced up at me before going back to inspecting my wounds.

"How do you feel? I need to figure out what kind of poison this is to get the antidote," Shifu said.

"The poison is clear," I told him. "And I feel dizzy, tired, and pain."

"Clear?" he repeated, moving away from the cuts and looking up at me. "From what you've been telling me, this is a very deadly poison. We need to get you to the Jade Palace immediately." He turned to Crane. "Can you carry her? I'll go on foot and meet you there."

Crane nodded and, flapping his wings, lifted from the ground. Gently grasping my shoulders with his feet he took off, slowly at first. He swiftly gained speed and it didn't take long to reach the Palace.

Carefully, Crane released his grip, dropping me the couple feet to the ground. I landed on all fours and tried to stand.

As I did a powerful wave of pain hit me. I collapsed to the ground with a cry of pain.

My vision went black just as I saw Master Shifu reach the top of the stairs.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, I certainly didn't expect that. : These stories can be unpredictable sometimes!**

**Anyway, I would like to thank **_**FyreDragon5, bookworm600, FFcrazy15, Graystripe64, Cryztalix, Odd Dreamer, AnimationGirl, Rachel Ray Wolf, **_**and **_**Bookcatz200 **_**for their awesome reviews! Thanks tons guys; you're part of what kept this story goin'!**

**Thanks to those who review in advance! Please let me know of any mistakes. =)**

**6/1/13**


	3. Wake Up

_**IMPORTANT NOTE:**_** This story will be slightly revised soon. I'm doing it to make sure that my stories achieve their full potential!**

**Here's chapter 3! Thanks to all those who reviewed! I really appreciate it. ^-^**

**This chapter starts in Po's point of view **_**and has been (slightly) revised!**_

* * *

><p><em>She's going to be okay, <em>I thought as I paced the hallway. _She's going to be okay._

Shifu had taken Tigress into a room I never knew was in the Jade Palace; the infirmary. Shifu had sent the rest of us to wait in the hall while he tried to exterminate the poison. He hadn't taken the time to tell us what the poison or antidote was. I understood that completely; Tigress safety was a lot more important than wasting time with that.

Crane had reported that after he had set her down Tigress had collapsed and blacked out.

That didn't help calm my nerves at all.

I glanced up at the closed doors to the infirmary for the millionth time, my concern going up another notch.

"Why is it taking so long?" I asked to no one in particular.

"Po, it's only been five minutes," Crane replied, but I could see the worry on his face.

"But that's still five whole minutes!" I fretted, still pacing.

Crane didn't respond.

Suddenly the doors to the infirmary opened. My head shot up in anticipation; Master Shifu stood in the doorway.

"So…?" I started, looking at Shifu expectantly.

"She's still fighting the poison, but I've given her the antidote; she should be fine now," Shifu said. "You may go in and see her if you like. She's still unconscious though."

"Okay!" I replied, walking into the infirmary's hall.

The others followed me as I strode down the short hall and stopped in front of three doors.

"Uh…" I trailed off. "Master Shif—"

"The door to your left is hers," Shifu interrupted.

"Oh, okay. Thanks."

I opened the door and walked into the dimply-lit room, instantly spotting Tigress.

She was lying on a bed that was up against the right wall. Tan bandages covered her stomach and arm where she had gotten cut. Her eyes were obviously closed, but she looked as if she was in pain; her body was tense, her claws unsheathed.

I tentatively stepped toward her, unsure of what to do next.

"So… what kind of poison is it?" Crane timidly asked Shifu.

"It is Sǐwáng," Shifu answered. "It's very deadly; it can kill someone within thirty minutes."

"But…" Crane started. "It had been only fifteen minutes since she was poisoned when she blacked out."

Shifu sighed. "The poison _kills _in thirty minutes; she only fell unconscious," he explained.

"Oh, uh, right." Crane looked back at Tigress. "She's going to be okay, right?"

"She should be," Master Shifu answered.

"'Should'?" I repeated. Shifu gave me a serious look.

"I've never dealt with this kind of poison before; I don't know if it has any side effects." I glanced at Tigress.

"But she'll be fine, right?"

"Yes," Shifu responded. I ignored the slight suspicion that he was just saying that to make us feel better and looked back at Tigress. I blinked in surprise when she shifted.

"Master Shifu! She—" I started, but he cut me off.

"She is not awake; Tigress will not wake up until tonight." Shifu looked up at me, watching as my mood deflated.

"Oh…" I trailed off. "So… what should we do until tonight?"

"Train," Shifu answered. "You'll need more training for when you face the foxes again."

"But—" I stopped my retort when Shifu gave me a warning look. "Uh, I mean, we'll train really extra hard!" I amended myself quickly, chuckling nervously.

"Good."

I walked past Master Shifu and to the door, the others following me.

Stepping out into the hall I glanced back at Tigress once more before closing the door behind us.

* * *

><p><em>I charged through the forest, breathing hard. She was chasing me; I glanced back to see that she was only two feet behind me.<em>

"_You can't escape!" she yowled._

_I didn't reply, instead focusing on getting away from her._

_I skidded to a stop when two foxes suddenly jumped in front of me; baring their teeth. I jumped over them; she followed me. The two foxes joined the chase, barking for reinforcements._

_A growl rose in my throat as several more foxes came at me, two running ahead of me, three to my right; three to my left, and the rest behind me. They started closing in; I had no escape._

_With hope that I could somehow evade all of the claws and teeth, I launched myself into the air. Some of the foxes stayed on the ground while most pounced at me._

_I spun, kicking two of the eight foxes in mid-air. The others snarled and when we landed, lunged at me._

_I managed to block and dodge four, but two of them raked their claws across my arms, creating deep gashes that somehow didn't bleed. I roared in fury and angrily punched them away from me, knocking them unconscious. The remaining four glanced timidly at each other before pouncing at me; I swiftly evaded their every attack, kicking and punching a few as they passed._

_Abruptly something hit me and I was thrown several yards away. Rolling to a stop, I shook my head and looked up._

_I narrowed my eyes and stood, facing her. She just grinned in response._

_She lunged at me and I dodged and struck. I hit her, causing her to stagger backward. As I came at her again I heard a familiar noise and tried to get out of the way._

_But it was too late._

_I cried out in pain as the arrows pierced my back, sending pain through every inch of my body. Growling, I reached behind me, grasping the shaft of one of the three arrows. Yanking on it, I suppressed another cry of pain as I pulled it out of my back._

"_You are weak!" she taunted, standing and walking toward me._

_I didn't listen to her; I had to fight!_

_Adrenaline pulsed through me and I pulled the remaining arrows out. Standing, I glared at her. She smirked at me and pounced. I rolled away and lunged at her in return. I tackled her and we began wrestling with each other. I hit her more than she hit me but she did manage to finally kick me off of her._

_I flipped and landed on all fours, breathing hard from the fight. Standing, I shook my head, trying to clear it, but that didn't accomplish anything._

_She smirked evilly, reveling in my pain._

_Abruptly an explosion rocked the ground and I stumbled and barely caught myself as I fell._

_Looking up, I realized with growing horror that fire was everywhere. Wood was burning; the forest was on fire. I searched for an escape as the fire swiftly spread, burning every blade of grass, every tree, every bush._

_I ran, not caring what happened to her. She was of no importance to me at the moment; I had to focus on escaping._

_But the fire was faster. It encircled me and I tried to change direction. But the fire was everywhere. The only escape was through it._

_Focused only on finding my way out, I jumped over a burning bush, wincing as the fire scorched my fur. Trying to ignore the pain that the flames invoked I continued my sprint, running through the trees as fast as I could while I was injured._

_Smoke soon filled my lungs; I started coughing uncontrollably, forcing me to stop running._

_I could hardly see anything through the thick fumes. I couldn't tell which way to go. Coughing again, I tried to keep fighting the death that was trying to take me._

_But I was losing the battle and I knew it. Resigning myself to my fate I curled tightly into a ball, trying to block out the sounds of the fire and burning._

_The world was fading. I couldn't take a single breath without coughing. I squeezed my eyes shut, attempting to stop what was happening._

_But I had no power over it; I was dying._

_And I couldn't wake up._

* * *

><p>I watched Tigress carefully, worried about the fact that she kept clenching and unclenching her fists. Her expression kept changing too; usually from pain to anger to defeat and back again.<p>

Training had ended less than an hour ago and Shifu had said that I could check on Tigress. So I had and eventually Shifu joined me.

"Are you sure she's okay?" I asked Shifu, probably for the eighth time.

"Yes. She is just dreaming," Shifu answered.

"Shouldn't we wake her up?" I suggested.

"No."

I sighed and looked back at Tigress who had shifted again.

Shifu had brought a few books and scrolls into the room so that he could watch Tigress and research the poison at the same time.

Shifu said that it would be best to wait for Tigress to wake up on her own but I wasn't convinced. It looked to me as if she was having a horrible nightmare or something.

"Are you sure?" I pressed.

"Yes." Shifu didn't even glance at me.

I looked down at the floor, wondering what to do. "Um, is there anyth—"

"You can read," he said, interrupting me and holding a book out to me. "Tell me anything that you learn about the poison."

"What's it called again?" I inquired, taking the book.

"Sǐwáng," Shifu replied.

"Okay." I sat on the floor and opened the book. I soon found out that it was a book on poisons as it listed almost every poison that I'd ever heard of, and more.

I turned the pages until I found the correct poison. I read through all the information it had on Sǐwáng and I soon found something very interesting.

"Hey Master Shifu, I think I found something," I announced.

Shifu, still holding a book, walked over to me. "What is it?"

"It says here that Sǐwáng is more potent on some animals and less on others." I showed Shifu the open page, pointing out where it said that bit of information.

"That is interesting…" Shifu's voice drifted off. "Does it list the animals that it's more potent on?"

"No…" I watched as Master Shifu walked back to the stacks of books and scrolls.

"We should find out. I want to know the regular potency of Sǐwáng. Search every book here. I'll look through the scrolls."

"Okay," I responded, taking the stack of books and settling back on the floor.

It took a couple of hours to get through them all, but none of them had any more information on the deadly poison.

"I can't find anything else about it, Master Shifu," I reported, closing the last book.

"The scrolls don't help much either. I'll be back. Stay here, Po." Shifu walked out of the room.

It didn't take long to get bored so I just watched Tigress again.

An idea suddenly popped into my head and, curious to see if it would work, I stood and walked over to Tigress. I timidly touched her arm, wondering if she would react.

She jerked away from me the second my finger made contact with her fur. Startled I instantly retracted my finger from her. Her entire body tensed again and her fists clenching tighter. She growled.

Worried that I had done something I really shouldn't have I backed away from her.

I stayed stiff as a board until she soon stopped growling and relaxed again.

"I'm not doing that again," I muttered to myself, sitting on the floor again just as Master Shifu came back into the room.

"There's nothing else in the library." Shifu sighed. "Unless you can get any more information about Sǐwáng from the foxes it looks like we can't find anything else about it. I doubt that the foxes will tell the truth anyway."

"So we can't find anything else at all then," I summed up. Shifu nodded.

"Great," I murmured sarcastically. "So what should we do?"

"First we must wait for Tigress to wake up. Then we should continue on as normal. The foxes will certainly attack again and we must be ready for them."

"Right," I agreed. "And what do we do if Tigress doesn't wake up tonight?"

Shifu didn't answer for several moments. I watched as he contemplated how to respond, glancing over at Tigress to see that her fists were clenched tightly again.

"Then we should be worried," he finally said. I looked back at him, watching as he walked to the still-open door.

"You should get some sleep, Dragon Warrior." Shifu looked back at me. "I'll keep watch over Tigress throughout the night. I just have some things to get done first."

I turned my attention back to Tigress after Shifu left. Why had she acted so strangely when I had touched her earlier?

I tentatively stepped to her bedside, debating whether it was a good idea or not to touch her again. Deciding it was worth another try I held my breath and placed my paw on her good arm.

She reacted immediately by jerking and tensing, the same response as earlier. But this time I kept my paw on her, wondering if her reaction would change.

Tigress growled again, but I didn't waver.

"Stop!" she suddenly snarled. Shocked by her outburst, I yanked my paw away from her.

This time she didn't relax, instead muttering unintelligible words and unsheathing her claws. I stared at her, hoping that I hadn't done something wrong.

"Tigress?" I said, hoping to calm her down somehow.

I knew that she was having a nightmare, but I was afraid to approach her; her sharp claws looked dangerous and I didn't want her to get angry at me. Plus, I didn't want Master Shifu to get mad at me for waking her or causing more trouble.

I relaxed slightly as Tigress quieted, but she was still tense.

I watched her, unsure of what to do.

The emotions on her face were of pain, anger and hatred. Her fists were clenched tightly, her claws unsheathed. My eyebrows furrowed with worry when I saw blood on her hands. It only took a minute to figure out why. Her claws were digging into her palms, creating tiny cuts.

Without thinking I tried to pry her fists open, hoping that she would stop hurting herself.

Tigress snarled and I withdrew my paws quickly, realizing that I'd touched her again. Resigned that I couldn't do anything about her paws I sighed and stood back.

Deciding that I'd had enough of her strange behavior, I opened the door and walked into the hallway. With one last glance at Tigress, I closed the door.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :::::::::::

Everyone was quiet. No one had quite been very talkative since what happened to Tigress yesterday. We were all lost in our own thoughts, hoping that everything would work out and that Tigress would be okay.

I hadn't yet told Master Shifu about Tigress' weird behavior, mainly because I wasn't sure what to say to him. But I knew that I should tell him, no matter the circumstances.

I finished my noodles and stood.

"Do any of you guys know where Shifu is?" I asked my friends. They all shook their heads.

"He's probably meditating," Mantis suggested.

"Or watching Tigress," Viper added.

"Okay, thanks." I walked out of the kitchen, deciding that the infirmary was the better option.

It didn't take long to get there, and I took a deep breath before opening the door and walking in. Shifu was sitting at a small table, several new books and scrolls taking most of the space on the wooden table. He glanced at me.

"What do you want, Po?" His tone wasn't harsh, but it wasn't very gentle, either.

"Just coming to check on Tigress," I answered, telling mostly the truth; I had also wanted to make sure that she was alright. "And also because I need to tell you something…"

Master Shifu turned to face me, a stern look on his face. "What is it?"

"I, uh, well, Tigress reacted really weirdly when I touched her yesterday…" I started, feeling awkward. How exactly was I supposed to word this?

Shifu rose and eyebrow. "What?"

"I touched her, and she kind of, um, jerked away from me and growled." I waited for his reaction, worried.

"That is odd…" Shifu got down from his chair and walked calmly to Tigress. I held my breath as Shifu placed his hand on her shoulder.

Tigress immediately jerked away from his touch, her fists clenching tightly. Shifu retracted his hand, obviously surprised.

"That is very strange…" His voice drifted off. He looked troubled.

"Um… is something wrong, Master Shifu?" I didn't like the fact that even he looked confused by her reaction.

"Should we try to wake her up?" I continued.

"I suppose we could try," Shifu agreed.

I stepped closer to Tigress. "Okay." Taking a deep breath, I put both of my paws on her arm. Like every other time, she reacted by jolting and growling. I gently shook her hoping to get a better response than last time.

"C'mon, Tigress, wake up!" I coaxed, but backed away from her when she snarled at me.

Shifu tried next by placing one hand on her leg and one on her arm. "Tigress," he said. "Tigress, wake up!"

Abruptly she stopped moving and I stared at her, very worried.

Then her eyes opened.

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, well, that chapter was a little harder to write than the last one. I had to redo that last part a few times.<strong>

**Anyway, I would love to thank my reviewers; **_**FyreDragon5, Cryztalix, OscarMerrinoz96, I Believe In Fairytales 606, AnimationGirl, bookworm600, CristenMarie1695, **_**and **_**Rachel Ray Wolf. **_**You guys are so awesome, and you're part of what keeps this story going!**

**Please review and let me know of any mistakes. Have a great day!**

**6/7/13**


	4. Reality

_**IMPORTANT NOTE:**_** This entire story will be slightly revised soon. I'm doing it to make sure that my stories achieve their full potential! **_**This chapter has been revised!**_

**Here's chapter four!**

**This chapter starts in Tigress' POV.**

* * *

><p><em>I felt someone touch me, causing my eyes to open. I jerked to my feet and looked around as I tried to find who touched me. I growled out loud, hoping that my warning would be enough to send away whatever was by me.<em>

_Realizing that the fire was gone I gazed around me, seeing that I was still in the forest. It looked like the fire had never existed; the trees had no scorch marks and nothing seemed even remotely burnt._

_I began wandering through the forest. _What am I supposed to do now? _I wondered silently. In an attempt to figure out where I was I climbed a tree, soon reaching the top. I was confused to find that, despite which direction I looked, all that I could see were more trees. The trees didn't seem to end at all._

_Something then touched my arm and I jerked in shock; no one was up here with me and I couldn't see any other animals. I growled and looked at my arm. I started getting freaked out when I couldn't see anyone, solely because I could still feel something touching me._

"_Stop!" I snarled, hoping my outburst would work. It did; whatever it was left me alone._

_I muttered angrily to myself; nothing that was happening made any sense._

_Sighing, I climbed back down the tree and resumed walking in one direction. It wasn't long before I lost track of time. Looking up at the sky I searched for the sun, trying to find out what time of day it was, but the trees were too close to each other to see very much of the sky._

_I climbed another tall tree and looked again. I furrowed my brow in confusion when I couldn't see the sun anywhere, yet it seemed like broad daylight lit every area. Looking around me I realized that there were no shadows either. What kind of place _was _this?_

_Something suddenly touched my arm again. I jerked in surprise and growled. When the odd feeling persisted I snarled. Who or whatever had been touching me stopped abruptly._

"C'mon, Tigress, wake up!"

What the-? _I gazed around everywhere. Who had said my name? I had recognized the voice but I somehow couldn't place it._

"Tigress."

_Something touched my arm and leg; I looked around, a growl rising in my throat. What was going on?_

"Tigress, wake up!"

_I stopped abruptly. Was I dreaming? It would definitely explain a lot of things._

_Using all of my concentration I tried to wake up, although I wasn't sure exactly how to do it. I shut my eyes and focused on one thought: _wake up!

I opened my eyes and gasped as I felt myself being suddenly pulled from the dream.

I blinked several times, trying to clear my vision.

"Tigress, you're awake!"

I turned my head to see Po and Master Shifu.

I was in some kind of wooden room. A small table took its place near the far corner and I was lying on a bed. I felt a bit dizzy.

"Master Shifu? Po? Whe-where are the others?" I asked, my voice hoarse from disuse. I hated feeling weak like this.

"They're probably still in the kitchen," Po answered. "You had us really worried for a while there!"

I gave him a confused look. "What?"

"You wouldn't wake u—ow!" Po was cut off as Shifu hit him with Oogway's staff.

"How do you feel?" Shifu inquired, giving Po a warning look.

"Okay," I answered, still a bit confused. "And what were you saying Po?"

"Just that you had us worried because you didn't wake up for a while," Po replied, glancing timidly at Master Shifu who was looking at me.

I stared at Po, shocked. _Why wouldn't I wake up? _I thought. Then the memories hit me like a ton of bricks.

The Crimson Blade. The leader fox. Fighting an intense battle.

The poison.

"How long was I out?" I questioned, trying in vain to keep the panic that rose in me hidden.

"About a day," Master Shifu responded. I widened my eyes. That long?

"Have the foxes come back?" I pressed further.

"No."

"What was the poison?"

"Sǐwáng. It's very dangerous."

"Oh." I tried to sit up, but immense pain forced me to stop. I gritted my teeth and settled back down.

"What's wrong?" Shifu asked, concern now on his face.

"It's just… my stomach." I glanced down at it; I could feel the bandages under my shirt. I took a deep breath to calm my unsettled nerves.

"The pain should stop within a couple of days," Shifu reassured.

I looked at him incredulously. "What? But what if the foxes come back? I need to fight them, and I don't care how bad it hurts!" I exclaimed. Realizing how childish my outburst was I lowered my ears in apology. "Sorry," I mumbled.

Shifu looked at me, considering. I couldn't tell if he was angry or not.

"Tigress, for your safety you must let your wounds heal. If you fight and injure yourself more you could worsen your wounds and it will take longer for them to heal," he explained.

I looked up at him. "Fine," I sighed. No matter how much I wanted to deny it Shifu was right. "But as soon as I'm healed up enough to fight I want to help my friends."

"Very well," Shifu replied.

Po shifted, obviously feeling awkward. "I'm just, er, I'll be with the rest of the Five if you need me…" He walked out of the room.

"Is something still wrong?" I inquired, noticing the worried look on Shifu's face.

"No…" He sighed. "Actually, yes. I don't know exactly how potent the poison really is; a few scrolls and books say that Sǐwáng is more potent on some animals and others not so much. I don't know if the poison has any side effects either."

I stared at him, my eyes wide; there was apparently a lot more to the poison than I had first thought. I narrowed my eyes in anger when a certain thought came to mind.

"What is it?" Shifu said, noticing my expression.

"The leader of the foxes, what if she gives some of her troops the poison to put on their claws?"

Shifu contemplated this idea. "Then we will have to be very careful. Make sure to stay away from their claws at all times. And if someone else gets cut, then…" He sighed. "Then we'll just have to repeat yesterday and get whoever is poisoned here as fast as possible."

I nodded in understanding. "Hopefully yesterday won't happen again."

"We can only hope," Shifu agreed.

Suddenly remember what the leader of the foxes told me I said, "Master Shifu, I was able to get some information from the fox's leader. She said that they are called the Crimson Blade."

Shifu abruptly went rigid.

"What's wrong?" I asked, concerned.

"The Crimson Blade?" he repeated. "That means that the rumors are true."

"What rumors?" I pressed, already fearing what he was going to say next.

"The Crimson Knights are rising in power again."

* * *

><p>"She's awake?" Crane exclaimed happily. I nodded excitedly.<p>

"Yeah! And she's totally fine," I assured.

"Great! Tigress had us really worried there," Viper commented.

"So…" Monkey started after a few moments. "What's her condition? Does the poison have any side effects?"

"It doesn't look like it."

"Well that's good!" Mantis cheered. I smiled.

"Oh yeah," I agreed. "And I'm starving! Can we have dinner now?"

"Sure," Crane laughed.

"Okay!" I walked over to a few cabinets and, pulling them open, gathered the necessary ingredients to make the usual noodle meal.

* * *

><p>"What?" I nearly shouted, my eyes wide with shock. "But those are only rumors!"<p>

"Yes, but just by reading you can't know everything," Shifu advised. "There have been rumors for years that the Crimson Knights are again rising, but under a different name. I haven't known that name until now."

"That doesn't prove that they're the same gang of foxes!" I argued, but I knew that the argument was hopeless.

"Tigress, you know as well as I do that I am right." He made direct eye contact with me. "I know that you don't want to believe it and neither do I. But it's true."

I nodded in unwilling agreement, sighing.

"We must stop them," Shifu continued. "If they rise to their full strength they will be almost impossible to stop. You and the others will set out as soon as you can and find out where their real leader is hiding and put this disaster to an end!"

I narrowed my eyes with determination. "I agree. But the Crimson Knights sound more dangerous than even Shen and his army," I pointed out.

"You're right. However, there is not really anyone else that can help you unless you can convince Masters Ox and Croc to fight with you. They may resist but do whatever you can to get them and anyone else that is willing to fight to join you. I will also come with you."

"Okay." Then a thought struck me. "Should we wait until the Crimson Bl—er, Knights attack again before we leave?"

"Yes. After you defeat them again, follow them. I will bring some of the antidote for Sǐwáng. Hopefully, none of you will get cut again."

I resisted the urge to snicker. _If the fox leader gives the poison to anyone else in her army then that will be nigh impossible, _I thought bitterly.

"Definitely," I agreed.

Silence took over for several moments until I broke the quiet.

"So… how long will it take for me to heal completely?" I asked, slightly tentative.

"At the very least, a few days. At the most, a couple weeks. And that's if you don't do anything that'll make it worse. The cuts on your stomach will scar, that much I know. I don't think that the ones on your arm will though," Shifu answered bluntly.

My ears dropped. A couple weeks? That was a long time, to me. I held back a growl as I thought about the cuts on my stomach. _Stupid fox._

"When will I be able to train again?" I pressed, hoping for a satisfying answer.

"It'll take a couple of days at least for you to be able to move without pain, Tigress." Shifu looked me in the eye. "And it'll take longer than that to be able train like you used to."

"Oh." I sighed.

"It won't take long for your strength and endurance to return though," Shifu reassured. "And you'll be the best fighter again."

I smiled slightly. I liked it when he took the time and chance to encourage me. In fact, he hadn't encouraged me like that for a long time.

"What about the Dragon Warrior?" I taunted. "Isn't he a better fighter?"

Shifu instantly recognized that I was teasing him.

"Oh, of course. How could I forget about the Dragon Warrior?" He smiled. "But I still think that you're a _slightly _better fighter; he can't even walk up the Thousand Steps without tripping."

"Very true." I pretended to consider something. "Although, he _has _been getting better at that."

"Really?" Shifu faked surprise. "That's shocking."

"I know, right?" I shook my head in amusement. Although Master Shifu was usually serious and stoic he could be very funny at times.

"It's getting late," Shifu said. I could tell that he was trying to be serious again despite that he was still smiling.

"You should get some rest so that you may heal quickly," he continued. "I will see you in the morning. Oh, do you want something to eat?"

I suddenly realized that my stomach was empty. "Sure," I replied.

"Okay. I'll send you some food." And with that, he walked out the door.

I sighed happily after he left. I really enjoyed it whenever Shifu would lighten up, which rarely happened.

I closed my eyes but I didn't feel tired. But, really, what was there to do when you're stuck in a bed for the next couple of days?

I spotted the stack of books and scrolls that were on the floor. Realizing that they were just within reach I stretched my arm out as far as I could without causing pain and grabbed one of the books. The title read, _The Book of Poisons._

_Figures that most of the books and scrolls in here would be about poisons, _I thought, opening the book.

The Table of Contents revealed that over fifty poisons were explained in the book. I turned to one that sounded interesting and started reading.

A little while later someone knocked on the door.

"Come in," I said, setting the book down by the bed as Po walked in, a tray in his hand. The tray had a bowl of steaming noodles on it as well as a cup that was filled halfway with water.

"Hey Tigress," Po greeted, pulled the small table over to my bed and setting the tray on it.

"Hi Po," I replied.

"Um… what were you reading?" Po asked, his tone making it clear that he felt awkward.

"A book on poisons," I answered.

"Why?"

I shrugged. "I was bored, I guess."

"Oh. Okay. Do you, uh, need anything else?"

"I'm good for now. Thanks, Po."

"No problem. I hope you get feeling better soon."

I smiled slightly as he left.

Taking a deep breath I lifted my back a little, my front paws on the bed for support.

I grunted as pain jolted through me at the movement but I kept going. When I was finally sitting upright I sighed with relief, glad that I could sit up.

Trying to ignore the persistent pain I grabbed the chopsticks and began to eat.

* * *

><p><strong>I know, kind of a dull chapter. But this story is <strong>_**far**_** from over and the next chapters are going to be suspenseful and awesome! (I hope)**

**Anyway, I would love to thank my reviewers; **_**FyreDragon5, FFcrazy15, Cryztalix, CristenMarie1695, OscarMerrinoz96, AnimationGirl, **_**and **_**Rachel Ray Wolf. **_**You guys are, again, awesome! Thank you **_**so **_**much for your reviews and support! You people help **_**tons!**_

**Thanks in advance to those who review! Let me know of any mistakes please! :)**

**Have a great day, everyone!**

**6/17/13**


	5. Mask

_**IMPORTANT NOTE:**_** This entire story will be slightly revised soon. I'm doing it to make sure that my stories achieve their full potential! **_**This chapter has been slightly revised.**_

**Here's chapter five! Enjoy!**

**This chapter starts in Tigress' point of view.**

* * *

><p>I took a deep breath as I considered how I could do this without showing the pain that I knew would come.<p>

Today I was going to try to stand. It had been a full day since I'd woken up and Shifu said that I should be ready.

No one but Shifu and I were in the room, yet I still felt awkward as I sat up and carefully swung my legs over the side of the bed, my feet dangling less than an inch above the wooden boards. Thankfully the action didn't cause very much pain at all.

Encouraged I slowly put weight on my back paws as I slid off of the bed. The movement didn't cause pain so I finally got completely off the bed and stood my full height.

I only felt very minor pain from the wounds on my stomach. I smiled slightly at Shifu, who wasn't even a foot away from me.

"No pain?" he asked.

"A little, but it's not much," I answered honestly.

"Good. Now try to turn," he commanded.

I nodded and, almost tentatively, twisted my torso to the right, making sure to keep my feet stationary.

Pain immediately shot through me causing me to grimace. Still, I held strong and continued until I couldn't bend any farther. Carefully, I bent back to my original position.

"Are you alright?"

I looked down at Master Shifu. "I'm fine," I replied. "It just hurts to bend that way."

He nodded. "How much did it hurt?"

"Not too much, but still quite a bit." I sighed. "How bad is it?"

"It's… not too bad," Shifu said. "But it will take time to heal. Probably about a week before you can start training again."

My shoulders slumped. "Oh. Okay."

I blinked in surprise as I saw compassion in Shifu's eyes, but he quickly hid it, as I did with my surprise.

"You should keep your strength up so that you can heal faster. For now you should rest again. Tomorrow we'll try a few more tests with what you can do without inflicting pain."

I nodded formally. "Okay."

I gently got settled on the bed again, Shifu watching me carefully.

"Good night, Master Shifu," I said.

"Good night," he replied, walking out the door.

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The next day was similar to the day before it; I was mostly confined to my bed. But as Shifu had promised he had me try some more exercises, most of which I could do easily enough.

"So does being able to do all of these exercises increase my chances of healing faster?" I asked him, slowly standing.

"It might. It all depends on what you do and that you don't hurt yourself more by trying to do something too hard."

I nodded in response.

Silence took over for several moments until I had an idea.

"I know something that we can do to get the upper hand on the battle with the Crimson Knights," I told him. He looked at me expectantly, gesturing for me to explain.

"They, or at least the leader fox, think that I'm dead, right?"

Shifu nodded slowly.

"Then what if we let them believe that? I mean, I definitely won't be able to fight the next time they come. So what if the others act like I… didn't make it?"

Shifu contemplated the idea. "The only problem with that is Po. He's not the best actor."

"Yes, but he can still try, right?"

"Yes…" Shifu drifted off. "But you do have a good point. It's worth a try."

* * *

><p>"… Do you understand?" Shifu asked, making eye contact with me.<p>

"Yeah," I answered. The others nodded in agreement. "But isn't it a bit risky? I mean, what if they find out that we're faking it?"

"Then we'll just have to fight like we usually do," Shifu replied. "Po, how good are you at acting?"

"Honestly? Not very good."

Master Shifu sighed. "Just try your best."

"Okay," I responded, slightly nervous.

"So we how exactly should we act?" Crane inquired, adjusting his straw hat with his foot.

"Sorrowfully and as if we really lost Tigress," Shifu answered.

"Mmkay," I said.

"If you want to visit Tigress, you can. But if she is sleeping don't disturb her," he told us. We nodded in understanding.

"I will be in the Dragon's Cove if you need me." Shifu walked away.

"I guess… we should all practice?" Mantis suggested awkwardly, shifting uncomfortably.

"Uh… yeah," I agreed, walking out of the kitchen and towards my room.

_How exactly am I supposed to pull this off? Put on some kind of imaginary emotionally masked act thing? _I thought, sighing.

This was going to be harder than I had originally thought.

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"Po! Would you get a move on already?! We have to go, _now!" _

I quickly jumped to my feet from my position on my bed, trying to rub the sleep from my eyes.

"Alright, alright, I'm coming!" I shouted, opening the thin door to my room groggily. "Why'd you wake me up so early, anyway?"

"Did you seriously sleep right through the gong? It's those foxes again!" Mantis complained.

That immediately woke me up.

"What?" I exclaimed. "We'd better hurry! Let's go!"

The others nodded and we ran towards the front of the Jade Palace. It didn't take long and we bowed respectively to Shifu.

"Where are they this time?" Monkey asked.

"The same abandoned village that they first attacked. You must hurry!" Shifu commanded, pointing in the right direction with Oogway's staff.

"Okay, here we go!" I shouted excitedly, jumping down the Thousand Steps two at a time. Unfortunately, these stairs seemed to hate me.

I yelled in surprise as my foot slipped too far and I was soon tumbling down the stairs, grunting with each contact I made with the hard stone.

I felt Crane's feet as he suddenly gripped my shoulders and, with a loud grunt of effort, lifted me back onto my feet.

"Thanks, Crane," I said.

"You're welcome," Crane replied, panting ever so slightly.

We soon made it to the bottom of the steps and I jumped off of the last few, landing in a roll that sent me almost automatically to my feet.

It took several minutes until we finally arrived at our destination.

"Now remember, we have to act like… you know," Viper reminded. The rest of us nodded.

"Got it." I peeked over the crumbled wall that we were crouching behind.

"Get a move on! Hurry up! You know we have to be quick!"

I turned my head until I spotted the leader of the foxes. Her crimson fur looked kind of shiny in the sunlight. Her eyes were narrowed as if she was angry, her tail lashed back and forth.

Dozens of other foxes roamed about the abandoned village, occasionally crouching to pick up things that were out of my sight. I could see some archers in a few trees, their reddish fur caked with mud that made it surprisingly hard to see the foxes. In fact, I had to squint to be able to see them very well.

Turning my head to look back at the leader fox I found that she had disappeared.

_Oh no, _I thought, slightly panicked.

"You're not quite as stealthy as you think."

I whirled to face the female fox that was standing a few feet away from us, leaning on a wall casually.

"I don't see your _friend _anywhere," she continued, her voiced laced with malice. She smirked. "I guess that my poison did the trick."

She abruptly barked, and most of the other foxes came running. Soon we were surrounded.

We got into fighting stances. I noticed that my friends' faces were slightly twisted into a sorrowful expression. I tried to do the same.

"Aw, did I take something you didn't want me to?" the leader taunted, eyes gleaming evilly.

"You could never take anything from us," Monkey said defiantly.

"Oh really?" She snickered. "Then I was mistaken. I _destroyed _something that you didn't want me to," she amended.

That statement made me mad but I managed to hold back an angry retort. I knew from experience that my outbursts usually ended up badly.

"Can we finish this?" one of the foxes complained. The leader fox's ear twitched irritably.

"Of course, Gāngxìng. I wouldn't want to keep you waiting." Her tone had a dangerous edge to it, and she glared angrily at the fox who had spoken. "I will punish with you later."

Gāngxìng lowered his ears in a submissive manner. "I-I am sorry," he apologized.

"You should be! How dare you oppose me like that? Do you think that you can tell me what to do? I am your _leader!" _

Gāngxìng backed away from her as she advanced on him, her lips drawn back in a snarl.

I glanced at Crane. _Well this is awkward, _I thought.

"Now's our chance," he mouthed. I nodded, as did the others.

"Look out!" barked another fox as I lunged at the leader. She turned just in time to see me and she swiftly rolled out of the way.

I ran at her and the battle began. I was up against the leader while the rest of the gang went after my friends.

She brandished her claws at me and I glimpsed the sharp metal that covered her claws, along with the barely-visible poison that coated them.

"You will die, just like the warriors before you!" she claimed, an evil smile on her face.

"No!" I shouted back, dodging her quick swipes. She just smirked and kept swinging her paws at me, claws outstretched in hopes to cut me.

My entire focus was on her claws and evading them. That was a mistake.

Something suddenly rammed into me, sending me into a nearby wall. The force of me hitting it was so great that I went right through the rock wall.

Groaning and trying to ignore the pain in my back as best as I could, I shakily stood.

"Ow…" I muttered, shaking my head and looking around.

I was in a crumbled house. Stairs that would have led to a second floor were obliterated and the second floor had collapsed completely too. Wood was splintered or burned. Walls had been torn down or destroyed. The roof was partly caved in as well.

"Find and kill him!" I heard the female fox command. "We don't need prisoners."

I quickly hid behind a pile of wood and waited for who I knew would come. I heard something jump through the hole I had made in the wall and start searching. Carefully and quietly I peeked out from behind the pile of wood.

A fox, which I recognized as Gāngxìng, currently had his back turned to me. I silently snuck up behind him.

Or I tried to, anyway.

A weak piece of wood splintered as I placed my foot on it, the noise instantly alerting Gāngxìng of my presence.

He abruptly turned and struck at me with his sword. I swiftly guided it away from me with my hand.

I rapidly punched his chest four times and then finished by punching his head. He slumped unconsciously to the floor.

"Gāngxìng, what's taking so long?" I hurriedly looked for another hiding place and I ran to the hole I had made, pressing myself against the brick wall that was still intact next to the gaping hole.

The second I saw her I lashed out, successfully hitting her and sending her backward.

"Haha!" I cheered. "Feel the thunder!"

"You idiot!" she shouted, jumping to her feet. With a yowl of fury she charged at me, paw raised in preparation to strike.

I sidestepped her claws and started backing away from her.

"You are no match for me! Even your friend was no match!"

I kept my mouth closed and tried in vain to ignore her taunting.

"In fact, she was better than you!"

I forced agony to show on my face.

_Just keep your cool; I'm good at acting! _I reminded myself, even though I really didn't believe that I was very good at acting.

But my plan was working; she was getting cocky. Still it was hard to dodge her claws. In fact, they seemed to be getting closer and closer to my skin.

I jerked in surprise when I felt the stone brick wall touching my back. Had I really backed up that far? I hadn't thought so.

I ducked under her paw which then struck the wall. I grinned victoriously and kicked her stomach as she tried to loosen her claws from the crack in the wall that she had made. She yelped and staggered back, her smirk replaced with an angry frown.

"You asked for it!" I teased, trying to glare back at her with as much intensity as she.

She didn't reply, instead coming at me again. This time I caught her paw.

"What—"

I didn't give her time to finish; I kicked her side, making her fall to the hard ground.

She quickly stood, snarling with anger. She lunged at me, fangs bared and claws glinting in the indirect sunlight.

I swiftly ducked, causing her to jump right over me, but she twisted so that her feet landed on the wall. Pushing off with her paws, she nimbly launched herself over me again, claws outstretched. I jerked backward as fast as I could. Still, her claws grazed the fur on my arm.

Landing smoothly on all fours she pounced right back at me. This time I stood my ground. I hit her front paw with the side of my hand, making it aim downward briefly instead of at my face. I simply clenched my fist tight and thrust it at her, hitting her squarely in the face, yelling, "Shashabooey!" in the process.

She yowled with surprise and pain as she fell back, clutching her right eye.

"I… I underestimated you," she said, standing uneasily. "But I won't make that mistake from now on. I've learned my lesson. Next time we meet, prepare to die! You will join your fallen friend!"

I watched as she raced out of the crumbled building. I could see that the eye I had hit was half closed. I didn't bother stopping her as she barked three times, the rest of the Crimson Knights following her, paws thudding on the ground as they ran.

"You defeated her?" Mantis asked, jumping onto my shoulder.

"Yup!" I answered happily.

Crane landed gracefully next to me, Viper slithered up by us and Monkey joined us soon after. Mantis hopped off of my shoulder.

"That didn't last long," Monkey commented.

"And that's a good thing," Viper added, a small smile on her face.

"We should probably get back to Master Shifu," Crane suggested. We nodded in agreement.

Nothing happened during the journey back to the Jade Palace. We found Shifu in the infirmary.

"Master Shifu!" I called as we entered.

Both he and Tigress turned to watch us as we came into the room. Tigress was standing, something that I hadn't seen her do for a few days.

"We won!" Mantis cheered.

"And we fooled them!" Viper continued.

"No one got hurt, right?" Tigress inquired, looking us over.

"Right!" Monkey responded enthusiastically.

Tigress gave a sigh of relief. "So they don't suspect anything?"

"Nope! We totally tricked 'em!" Mantis replied.

"Did you find anything else out?" Shifu asked.

"No…" I drifted off, realizing that I had forgotten to ask them for information. "But everything else worked!"

"Good. Then we should prepare for the next time they attack. It seems that their attacks are two or three days apart and they attack early in the morning," Shifu told us. "Tigress, you will have to wait longer so that you can heal and resume training."

"I understand," she responded.

"Until then you five will keep training," Shifu continued, giving each of us an even stare.

We nodded and bowed to him, including Tigress. I noticed that she either didn't feel pain or just didn't show it.

With a smile, Crane, Viper, Mantis, Monkey and I walked out of the room and headed for the training hall.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, there it is! I hope that you enjoyed. I wonder if the leader fox has actually been fooled or is also faking it?<strong>

**Anyway, I would love to thank my reviewers; **_**FyreDragon5, CristenMarie1695, Cryztalix, OscarMerrinoz96, AnimationGirl, Donakiko, **_**and **_**Graystripe64. **_**You people are awesome! Thank you **_**so **_**much! You guys are very helpful, trust me!**

**Have a great day/night!**

**6/19/13**


	6. In The Night

_**IMPORTANT NOTE:**_** This entire story will be slightly revised soon. I'm doing it to make sure that my stories achieve their full potential!**_** This chapter has been slightly revised.**_

**Thanks to all those who reviewed! Here's chapter six. =D**

**This chapter starts in Tigress' point of view.**

* * *

><p>Everything was quiet. The Crimson Knights hadn't attacked for three days and everything had continued almost normally. I was healing fast and Shifu said that I might be able to start training again soon, which I undoubtedly looked forward to. I now slept in my own room and I could walk around freely without any pain at all.<p>

I stared at the ceiling, the darkness of night disturbed only by the glow of the full moon outside.

Getting off of my bed I restlessly walked out of my room quietly, my paws making no sound as I closed the thin door to my room and crept down the hall. I was completely alert, my ears ready to pick up the slightest noise.

I heard Po's bed creak slightly as he shifted on it. I usually heard that often. No other sound disturbed the silence of night so I continued toward my destination.

It didn't take long to reach the doors to the courtyard in front of the Palace. I knew from times past that although its opening was smooth the doors made slight noise when opened. Making my way to a nearby window I jumped out of it and nimbly landed on the soft grass outside.

I winced as the landing caused pain to shoot through me but I held strong and, standing up, walked to the closest tree. Launching myself upward I caught a branch and swung myself on top of it. I ignored the increased pain that came from the action and continued jumping from branch to branch until I was at the top of the tree. I looked down at the village below as I waited for the pain to pass.

All of the lights were off, making the village look abandoned or empty, yet at the same time it looked tranquil.

Until movement caught my eye.

Crouching low so that the branches and leaves concealed me I watched a shadow as it steadily moved closer to the Palace. My eyes widened when I noticed that there was far too much movement for there to be just one animal.

Skillfully and carefully I made my way back down the tall tree, making sure that I stayed out of sight of the figures.

Before dropping to the ground I looked around until I spotted the animals again. This time they were much closer, making it clear that they were heading for the Palace.

Suddenly I realized what they were as the blade of a sword glinted from the light of the moon.

I quickly dropped the few feet to the ground and swiftly launched myself up to the window I had come through. Not caring about the pain I felt in the slightest I sprinted back to the hallway where mine and the other rooms were.

"Wake up!" I shouted, running to each room and opening the doors. "We're being attacked!"

"What?" Po asked as he stumbled groggily out of his room. "Wha-who's attacking us?"

"The foxes!" I replied quickly. "I'm going to get Master Shifu. Get to the courtyard and be quiet; they don't know that I saw them yet."

"How do you kn—"

"Po!" I interrupted. "That doesn't matter right now! Just do what I told you!"

I ran as fast as I could down a few hallways to Master Shifu's room, not paying enough attention to the others to know if they had obeyed me or not; I already knew from experience that they would comply.

"Master Shifu!" I yelled, waiting in front of his room. I didn't dare open the door or go into his room; he had forbidden everyone from entering.

"What is it?" Shifu inquired, opening the thin door. I could tell that I had just woke him up; he didn't look happy.

"It's the Crimson Knights! They're going to invade the Palace!"

"How do you know this?" His voice abruptly took on a formal air and he no longer looked tired.

"I was outside and saw them coming," I explained hurriedly. "The others are already up and they're in the courtyard."

"Good. You should stay here," Shifu commanded.

"Can't I fight?" I pleaded.

"No. You will risk injuring yourself more and they will know that you are alive."

I sighed. "I understand." Bowing to him I asked, "So what should I do?"

"Stay out of sight. I know that you want to but don't come to watch. You will risk being seen."

I nodded in response.

"Stay in the Palace," Shifu called over his shoulder as he sprinted away, heading directly for the courtyard.

I watched him wistfully as he ran around a corner and out of my sight. Wondering what I could do I wandered the halls, my ears alert to pick up any sound.

I soon found myself in the Training Hall. I stared at all of the equipment, noticing how quiet and empty it looked when no one was training.

I walked around the room, wondering if I could start training. Jumping onto the Turtle Bowl I balanced myself, shifting my weight so that I didn't even have a chance of falling off. I hopped to the other side of it, wavering only slightly. I continued jumping from one side to the other and I soon realized that I really didn't feel very much pain at all.

I don't know how much time passed before I nimbly hopped off, landing gracefully on one foot. I smiled to myself as I made my way to the doors of the Training Hall.

I stopped in mid footstep when I heard noise coming from the other side of the large wooden doors. Perking my ears up, I listened carefully.

I heard someone or something running up to the Training Hall, the quick footsteps that were rapidly getting louder and closer making it clear that their destination was the training hall.

I quickly looked around for a hiding place. Finding one I jumped up into the beams above the training equipment and hid myself in the darkness and the wood.

I flattened my ears against my head as the din of two doors being destroyed sounded. Splinters of dark wood flew below me, some of them coming dangerously close to hitting the wood under my feet. I held my breath as the sounds of fighting suddenly commenced. I could easily see my master and friends as the fight progressed through the Training Hall.

I slowly let out the breath I was holding, hoping desperately that I wouldn't be found. I remained alert constantly through the noise of the battle. I secretly hated myself for not helping my friends, but logic and fear stopped me. The logic was the fact that the Crimson Knights still thought that I was dead. The fear came from the pressing thought that I might injure myself even more, but even more so than that was the worry that I would cause the downfall of at least one of my friends; I would never be able to forgive myself if that happened.

I listened intently as the fight raged on. Anxiety was clawing at me making me feel very uncomfortable, but I forced myself to stay as still as a statue. I knew very well that the slightest movement would result in possibly being spotted which would undoubtedly alert at least one fox that I was here.

I narrowed my eyes as I heard someone start talking… it didn't take long to realize that it was the leader of the Crimson Knights. I spotted her quickly as she was fighting Po.

"I told you, panda, I am not going to underestimate you again! You're a humiliation to Kung Fu!" she taunted.

"I didn't even know that you know Kung Fu!" Po retorted angrily.

"Oh, getting angry? Is it because of what I just said or is it because I stole your _friend _away from you?"

I knew instantly that she was talking about me. _So she obviously likes to tease, _I thought darkly.

"Okay, seriously?" Po responded. "Your evilness and teasing is _really _starting to annoy me!"

I became troubled as Po and the leader's fighting began coming towards me. Within a few moments they were directly below me and the wooden beam I was crouched on was blocking most of my sight of them. Disconcerted, I forced myself to become as still as a statue; I hardly dared to breathe or blink in fear that she or someone else would hear or see me.

_Don't look up. Please don't look up, _I thought, dread filling me as I saw the leader backing away from Po; she was in my full sight now. Fortunately her back was to me. Unfortunately Po wasn't and he noticed me as he glanced up briefly. He did a double take in my direction before realizing his swift mistake.

_Oh no._

Knowing that my cover was already blown I launched myself down from the beam and at the fox as she turned to see what Po was looking at.

She gave a yowl of surprise as I tackled her to the ground. It was completely obvious that she was utterly shocked; the look on her face said it all.

"You…"

I didn't give her time to continue and instead sent her flying into a wooden pillar with a hard kick to her head. I straightened up to a stand and tried not to wince from the pain; I had dropped at least ten feet from the beams that were now above my head.

"Tigress! What are you—"

"Not now, Po!" I snapped. "Focus on the battle; I will fight the leader if she wakes back up."

"But you're still hurt!" he retorted.

I glanced around; I could feel the stares of nearly everyone in the room on me.

"I knocked her out and you need to keep fighting!" I hissed, pushing him towards the remaining foxes.

"Whoa!" he yelled as he almost lost his balance. I rolled my eyes at him before turning my attention back to the leader.

I paid Po and the others almost no heed as I knelt next to the unconscious leader. I forced her arms and paws to her sides with my paws, making sure that she wouldn't be able to scratch me. I then shook her awake as the din of the battle started up again.

"You! You're supposed to be dead!" the leader snarled angrily. "Why are you alive?"

"I am not going to tell you anything. You however are going to answer my questions," I growled, keeping my voice low but threatening.

"Never!" she retorted sharply, glaring at me. Her eyes were filled with intense hatred.

I unsheathed my claws. I usually never used them for fighting, but in this case I found it necessary.

She gave a cry of pain as I dug my claws into her wrists. "Okay, okay!" she barked. "I'll talk!"

"What is your name?" I asked, half-sheathing my claws so that they wouldn't hurt her.

"Chóuhèn," she answered, her tone bitter.

"What are the Crimson Knights planning?"

"That's something I really will never tell you."

I narrowed my eyes and slowly unsheathed my claws. I honestly hated doing this but what other choice did I have?

"You _will _answer me!" I argued.

"Fine!" she screeched. I sheathed my claws.

"We want to take over China," Chóuhèn spat. "Now let me go!"

"I have one more question for you. Where is your base?"

We glared at each other for several tense moments before she barked three times. Abruptly her foot came upwards and connected with my stomach, causing me to release her and fall backward with a shout of major pain. I saw her claws an instant before they struck and I quickly rolled out of the way, despite the intense pain that I felt. Her claws raked empty air. Breathing heavily, I clutched my stomach.

Chóuhèn blinked in surprise when she witnessed the action. She then smirked triumphantly. I gave her a puzzled look before she darted out of the training hall, the rest of the Crimson Knights following her closely.

My friends chased after them to ensure their departure but I stayed behind, overwhelmed by pain. I squeezed my eyes shut as the pain slowly died down and I steadied my breathing. I had to wait for several more moments before the pain was dull enough to allow me to run after my friends.

I reached them as they stopped at the top of the stairs. We watched together as the gang of foxes sprinted right through the main path of the village and disappeared into the forest beyond. I let my arms drop to my sides.

"Is anyone hurt?" I inquired the others, looking them over and erasing any emotion that was linked to pain on my face; I couldn't let them know that Chóuhèn had hurt me. It soon became obvious that no one had seen me get hit.

"I don't think so," Po replied, smiling slightly. "We beat them again!"

"Tigress, did you find anything else out that is useful?" Master Shifu asked me. I turned toward him.

"Actually, yes. I found out that the leaders' name is Chóuhèn, and she said that the Crimson Knights want to take over China," I reported. "But she wouldn't tell my where their base is. She got away before I could ask her."

"Hmmm… She may be lying about taking over China." Shifu made eye contact with me. I simply shrugged.

"There isn't really a way to tell," I responded.

"True…" Shifu drifted off. "The next time they attack you should be ready to fight them," he told me. "You can start training tomorrow if you like."

I brightened. "I would like that."

"Then you will begin tomorrow morning," Shifu said. I nodded at him gratefully.

"So the Crimson Knights or whatever knows that you're alive now?" Mantis questioned me after several moments of silence.

"Yes," I sighed.

"Well, that cover didn't last long," he muttered. I nodded slightly in agreement.

"But look at the bright side, guys! We've found out a lot about the Crimson Knights!" Po tried.

"Po is right," Shifu commented. "We should focus more on the positive of what happened."

Murmuring our agreement we headed back into the Jade Palace.

"Is anyone else hungry for breakfast? Because I'm starving!" Po complained, and as if on cue his stomach rumbled.

"Yes, you can eat breakfast. It's almost time to do that, anyway." Shifu sounded casual even though he looked slightly amused.

The sun, now peeking over the horizon, shed pinkish light over the Valley. I gave one last precarious glance at where the Crimson Knights had left before following my friends and master into the Palace.

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Nothing unusual happened for the rest of the day. Time seemed to go by quickly and it was soon time to go to bed.

"Goodnight, Tigress." Po's voice sounded from his room.

"Goodnight, Po," I replied, lying down on my bed and ignoring Po as he said goodnight to the others.

I felt utterly exhausted; I hadn't gotten much, if any, sleep last night. Still, it took a long time to fall asleep.

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_I ran through a forest of bamboo. I didn't know why I was running; I couldn't hear anyone else around me._

_Suddenly the ground beneath my paws gave way and I fell with a shout of surprise. Landing on all fours, I looked around me cautiously._

_The moon overhead cast little light into the hole I had apparently fallen into, making it harder to see. Looking up I judged the hole to be about thirty feet deep. Shaking my head as if to clear it, I stood and took in my surroundings._

_I had seemed to fall into some kind of tunnel; the depth of the darkness told me that the hole continued in two directions._

_I sniffed the air but I couldn't smell anything other than the dirt, grass and bamboo. There was also a scent that I couldn't recognize, giving me an uncanny feeling, almost as if… I was being watched._

_I spun around to face whoever was behind me but no one was there. I tensed and listened carefully for any sound, but the only thing I could hear was my own steady breathing._

"_Tigress." _

_I whirled around again as the voice sounded behind me. Again, however, there was no one._

_The voice had been deep and soothing but it also had a threatening edge to it. I didn't recognize the voice at all and that made the fur on my neck bristle._

"_Who's there?" I called out harshly, baring my teeth in warning._

"_Tigress," the voice said again. _

_I resisted the urge to turn. The voice always sounded like it was right behind me._

"_Show yourself!" I snarled, glancing around._

"_Tigress…" The voice muttered something that I couldn't make out._

"_What?" I growled. "Are you too scared to show yourself to me?"_

"_Tigress." _

_I snarled in reply to the voice as I began to get frustrated._

"_What do you want from me?" I roared, furious._

_The voice didn't respond. Silence filled my ears and my stomach suddenly started hurting. I was now extremely confused. What was going on?_

"_Hey, Tigress, wake up!" This time is was Po's voice. "Wake up!"_

_I squeezed my eyes shut and concentrated on his voice._

With a gasp of pain I bolted upright in my bed. I was breathing hard and I was clutching my stomach. Looking up I saw my friends, not including Shifu, staring at me with wide, worried eyes.

"Tigress, are you okay?" Viper asked.

"I'm fine. It was just a nightmare," I replied.

"'Must've been a bad one!" Mantis commented.

"Yeah," I muttered, utterly confused as to why my dreams had all recently been so strange.

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><p><strong>Wow, was the entire chapter in Tigress' POV? I think so! ;D Sorry for the weird dream and ending. I wasn't sure what else to end it with. I may change it later. :)<strong>

**So, please review and let me know of any mistakes! I also want your opinion on this chapter. What was your favorite part? Your least favorite?**

**Anyway, I would love to thank my reviewers, **_**FyreDragon5, Cryztalix, OscarMerrinoz96, bookworm600, Donakiko, **_**and **_**AnimationGirl. **_**You people rock! ^-^ Thank you SOOOO much!**

**Have a great day/night, everyone!**

**6/25/13**


	7. Storms and Memories

_**IMPORTANT NOTE:**_** This story will be slightly revised soon. I'm doing it to make sure that my stories achieve their full potential! **_**This chapter has been revised!**_

**Here's chapter seven! Enjoy!**

**For all of you who were wondering, Chóuhèn means hatred.**

**This chapter starts in Tigress' POV.**

* * *

><p>I sat upright in my bed, rigid. I fought briefly to steady my breathing and then sighed.<p>

Images of the same nightmare that I'd gotten for the past few nights replayed in my head: the underground tunnel and the strange voice. It was always the same and yet it still scared me. I was unsure why.

I smoothed down my fur with my forepaws and stood, stretching. I sighed. I knew that it was close to midnight but I felt restless, as always.

The nightmares had never stopped, even when I was too exhausted to think clearly. Shifu was training me again and my wound was almost completely healed.

The Crimson Knights' last attack had been five days ago, which was two days longer than usual. Their attack in the night had been unexpected so now everyone was trying to be prepared for anything.

I silently walked out of my room and made my way to the courtyard. Reaching the same doors that I had first done on the night the Crimson Knights had attacked, I nimbly jumped through the same window and landed on the soft grass, now without pain. Climbing up the nearest tree I hopped from branch to branch until I reached the top.

I resisted the urge to smile as I felt the cool, crisp breeze of the night. I felt absolutely no pain. I looked upward and saw that the moon was at its peak.

Turning my amber gaze to the village below I watched it intently, ears pricked to pick up any sound. I scanned the village carefully, ready to see the slightest movement.

This was my nightly routine: I would come out here after the nightmare and watch for any signs of danger. Or more specifically, the Crimson Knights.

I listened to the stillness of the night, waiting and watching for anything. Glancing at the moon again I saw that dawn was only about an hour away.

Looking at the village once more, I checked one last time for danger before making my way down the tree and through the window.

A few minutes after I had gotten into my room the morning gong rang.

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"_Aahhh!" _Po shouted as I threw him into the air. He let out a grunt as he landed, flat on his belly.

Shifu had wanted us to spar with each other today. I had chosen to fight a very unwilling Po.

Yelling out a battle cry Po got back up and ran at me again. This time he tried to punch me, aiming for my head. I realized that he was slightly angry.

I noticed how much power he put into the punch. I also noticed how much effort he was exerting.

"Don't waste all of your energy on one move," I instructed, ducking under his paw and sweeping his feet out from under him with my leg. "You'll use too much energy and then you might become too weak to keep fighting too soon."

I waited while he staggered to his paws.

"Mmkay," he replied to my advice and struck.

The fight went on until Shifu told us to switch sparring partners. This went on until the sun started setting, shedding reddish light over the Palace and Valley.

"That is enough, students," Master Shifu said as he flipped me over him. I grunted as I landed on my back. I swiftly got up.

I'd had to fight Shifu as the last battle and, although I was a lot better than before, he still beat me. I had noticed during the fight that he was going easier on me than usual. I guessed it was because of my still-healing injury.

Breathing hard from the various battles we had fought, my friends and I nodded and bowed to Shifu.

"Whew, I'm beat!" Po complained as we headed for the kitchen. "Is anyone else as hungry as I am?"

"I don't think _anyone _could ever be as hungry as you, Po," Monkey joked, smirking.

"That's for sure!" Mantis agreed with a chuckle.

I smiled as everyone else laughed.

"Aw, come on Tigress!" Po teased. "Don't you think that was funny?"

"Sure," I responded, sending him a glance that told him to drop the subject. I realized then that worry and lack of sleep were finally taking a toll on me.

I focused again on my friends, who were in the middle of a conversation.

". . . and then I hit the fox into a pillar!" Mantis was boasting.

"Yeah, I saw that! You totally took out that fox!" Po exclaimed. "We all were _awesome!"_

"Especially you, Po!" Monkey said, smiling. "You were fighting the leader!"

"Her name is Chóuhèn," I cut in, doing my best to not sound grumpy.

"Really?" Po replied, glancing at me. "That's a weird name."

"It fits her, though," I muttered, keeping my voice low enough so that the others didn't hear me. I shook my head slightly at myself. _Think positively! _I scolded myself.

We reached the kitchen and sat down while Po made dinner.

"Why doesn't Shifu ever eat with us?" Po asked as he set the bowls of soup in front of us. "He always seems to go somewhere else."

I shrugged. "He's never told us," I answered. "He probably just likes to eat alone."

The others nodded in agreement.

"So why does he—" Po was interrupted by a loud thunderclap.

We shared glances with each other. I hadn't remembered there even being a single could in the sky earlier. Thunder sounded again, the deafening noise drowning out all other sounds.

I flattened my ears against my head to try and block the noise, but the thunder was still loud. Po noticed this.

"Why are you doing that?" he inquired. "It's not _that _loud."

"Your ears aren't as sensitive as mine," I replied.

"Oh."

The rest of dinner was eaten quietly, the only sound being the roar of thunder that came every once in a while.

I pushed away from the table when I finished and placed my bowl in the sink.

"I'm going to bed," I told the others, walking out of the kitchen. "Goodnight."

"Okay. Goodnight!" Po called as I left the room.

I flinched when thunder suddenly sounded again.

I hated storms mainly because of the thunder; I liked to watch the lightning streak across the sky and I didn't mind the rain.

I opened the door to my room and walked in. Laying down on my bed, I tried to sleep.

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_I ran through the forest. As always, no one was chasing me. I was just running. Rain soaked my fur, creating extra weight that caused me to slow down slightly. Not only that, but the cool night air seemed a lot colder with the rain._

_Lightning flashed, illuminating the trees around me. I skidded to a stop, shocked at what I had seen in the brief light._

"_Chóuhèn," I greeted harshly._

_The fox stepped out from the many trees and bared her teeth._

"_Tigress," she returned, glaring at me with her piercing green gaze._

_We lapsed into a staring contest, trying to see who would break down first. Finally, Chóuhèn averted her eyes. Abruptly she darted away. Growling, I chased her._

_The wind and rain chilled me to the bone but I didn't slow in the least. I was right on her tail and I couldn't give up now. Not when I could get my revenge for all that she had done. An ever-burning hatred toward Chóuhèn raged inside of me. My anger was one of the only things that I had always found hard to control._

_Light flashed and thunder soon followed. I could hear Chóuhèn's ragged breathing; she was wearing down._

_But I felt like I could run for days at a time. No exhaustion slowed me. In fact, I sped up, encouraged by her panting._

_Enraged and realizing that she was within reaching distance, I pounced, landing roughly on her shoulders._

_She let out a sharp cry of pain and surprise as she fell; the force of my jump had pushed her down. Not only that, but I had unsheathed my claws. Releasing one of her shoulders I lifted a paw and prepared to strike. Then I saw it. Chóuhèn was smirking at me and I suddenly knew why._

"_Do it," she encouraged._

_I hesitated. Should I really kill her because I wanted to? I shook my head. This was only a dream. I could do whatever I wanted in my dreams._

_But inside I knew that killing her, even in my dreams, was wrong. I wasn't completely sure why until I remembered something that Master Oogway had told me a long time ago._

"_A true warrior fights for honor," he had said, "not for wealth or fame."_

"_But what if a warrior has to kill?" I had asked._

_The old turtle gave me a considering look. "If threatened, you must act. If taking one's life is by your will, it is not honorable."_

_I blinked. "So… if I am threatened I should kill?"_

"_No, you must act. I didn't say kill."_

"_So I should fight?"_

_The old master nodded, a smile on his face. "And…?"_

"_And if I kill because I want to, then I'm not a true warrior?"_

"_That is correct."_

_I hadn't tried to kill anyone since. But I had come so close to doing that now, even though it was in my dreams, that it actually frightened me._

_I got off of Chóuhèn and let her stand. I had made a decision a long time ago that I would always obey Oogway and listen to what he said. Besides, what would justify my actions if I killed Chóuhèn? I couldn't think of any good reason._

"_You are weak!" she snarled, glaring at me._

"_No," I retorted calmly. _"You _are weak."_

My eyes snapped open. I wasn't scared at all; it wasn't the dream that had awoken me. No, it was something else. I pricked my ears to try and pick up any sound, but that was a mistake.

Thunder abruptly boomed and I hissed with annoyance as I immediately flattened my ears against my head. The storm was still raging outside; I now noticed the noise of the pounding rain.

I sat up and stretched. Unlike the past few nights I actually felt refreshed. I smiled to myself and stood, quietly making my way outside. Once there, I looked up at the sky, taking a deep, calming breath. I quickly noticed that dawn would break very soon; small rays of light from the sun were peaking over the far mountains. The dark storm clouds seemed to be thinning out and I predicted that the storm would end within the hour.

I smiled again. For some reason I felt happy. Maybe it was because I got a good amount of sleep for once. Or maybe it was because of how my encounter with Chóuhèn ended. Whatever the reason was, I really didn't mind at all. I quite enjoyed the feeling of the cool rain soaking my fur. I tipped my head up and opened my mouth, letting the raindrops fall into it.

Realizing that I was acting like a little kid would I closed my mouth, though I was still smiling. Lightning flashed. I flattened my ears and counted the seconds until the thunder sounded: five seconds. That proved that the storm was moving away. I realized that the rain was slowing.

I started down the many stairs, reaching the bottom and running out of the Valley. I planned to simply run around the outskirts of the village because I wanted to and also to make sure that there were no foxes in sight.

I always had enjoyed the feeling of running, although I hardly got to do so just because I wanted to. I was usually on a mission or something when I would run. But this time, I just got to enjoy the feeling of the wind rushing past me and the slight adrenaline that came from running.

I then saw that I didn't have much time before the morning gong would ring. Pressing myself to run faster, I made my way to the window. Shaking thousands of water droplets from my fur, I jumped inside and ran to my room.

I then realized that someone would get suspicious if they saw me wet like I was.

I dried myself off and waited in my room for the gong to ring. When it did, I was completely prepared for it.

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><p><strong>I know, I know; kind of a dull chapter. But just you wait! This story is a long one (well, to me it's long). More exciting chapters are ahead!<strong>

**I apologize for the shortness of this chapter. But please rest assured that this is the shortest chapter in this story! :)**

**I would **_**love **_**to thank my reviewers, **_**FyreDragon5, AnimationGirl, Rachel Ray Wolf, Cryztalix, CristenMarie1695, OscarMerrinoz96, Graystripe64, **_**and **_**Bee Sohma. **_**You guys are **_**awesome!**_** Thank you SOOO much!**

**Please review, and I want to know what you guys think might happen! ;D Also, please let me know of any mistakes you can find.**

**Have a great day/night!**

**7/16/13**


	8. On The Trail

_**IMPORTANT NOTE:**_** This story will be slightly revised soon. I'm doing it to make sure that my stories achieve their full potential! **_**This chapter has been revised!**_

**Alright, here's chapter eight!**

**And, wow, this is my favorite story I've ever written, and it appears to be my most popular as well! Thank you everyone! It's because of you that this story is what it is!**

**This chapter starts in Tigress' point of view.**

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><p>I back-flipped through the air, landing on all fours. Turning to receive Po's fist, I seized it and twisted my arm, which in turn caused him to perform a barrel roll in mid-air and land, shouting in surprise, flat on his back.<p>

I then quickly darted forward, narrowly evading Viper as she struck at me with the end of her tail. I lightly kicked Crane forward; Viper accidentally hit him instead. She apologized to him hastily before coming back at me. I hurriedly dodged Monkey's lashing feet and being careful to not hurt him, grabbed his tail and flung him into Mantis, who couldn't move in time because he was already in the air. I fluidly evading Viper's every attack before gently kicking her away.

"Good, Tigress," Master Shifu praised. "That is enough training for today."

I resisted the urge to smile and bowed to him. The others followed suit.

Hearing the flapping of wings I, along with everyone else, turned to see Zeng flying rapidly towards us. A look of horror, panic and worry was on his face.

"What is wrong, Zeng?" Shifu asked as the goose made a hasty landing.

"Jiānruì-Lóng City is d-destroyed!" he stammered nervously.

"What?" Shifu exclaimed, shocked. "When did this happen and who destroyed the city?"

"Three d-days ago," Zeng answered. "And a g-gang of foxes did the d-damage."

I narrowed my eyes angrily. _The Crimson Knights! _I thought, fury boiling within me. _So that's what they were doing this whole time…_

Master Shifu was just as surprised as the rest of us.

"Thank you for the message," he said.

With a nod, Zeng flew off.

"The Crimson Knights destroyed a whole city?" Po exclaimed, his fear showing.

"Yes," Shifu replied grimly. "We must hurry and find them before they destroy another city or village."

"But how are we supposed to find them?" I argued. "They could be anywhere by now!"

"We cannot just wait for them to destroy all of China!" Shifu retorted.

I held back a sharp reply and tried to keep my anger at bay. I knew that Shifu was right, but how was it possible to know where they were going to strike next?

"We need to make an effective plan," my master continued. "We need to find the Crimson Knights."

"But how?" Po inquired.

Shifu faced us. "We will think that over tonight. In the morning, we will meet in the kitchen and talk over breakfast."

We nodded and bowed, watching as the red panda walked back toward the Palace. Glancing at each other uneasily, we followed him inside.

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"What ideas have you come up with?" Shifu asked as we ate breakfast.

"Well," Po started, "what if we just travel around and get lucky and find them?"

Everyone gave him an annoyed look.

"I thought it was okay…" he drifted off. "… Alright! I just made that up on the spot. I don't know how to find them."

"I have an idea," I spoke. Shifu gestured for me to continue.

"What if we travel to the destroyed city and see if they left any trails?" I suggested.

"That could work… but realize that it will take one week to get to Jiānruì-Lóng. If that is the best plan that we can come up with then we will travel. But we need to put our plan to action as soon as possible," Shifu said. "Do any of you have another plan?"

Silence filled the room.

"Then it is settled. I will gather food for the journey while the rest of you finish with your breakfast. Join me in ten minutes in the courtyard," the Grand Master commanded.

We nodded in agreement, watching as Shifu hurriedly left the room.

"Are you guys excited?" Po inquired as soon as the red panda was out of earshot. "'Cause I am!"

I shrugged. "Remember the purpose of this mission, Po," I reminded.

"Yeah," Crane agreed. "This could be as dangerous as when we went to stop Shen!"

"Or more dangerous," I muttered, keeping my voice low so that the others didn't hear me. I almost visibly shook my head. _Stop thinking negatively! _I silently scolded myself.

"Uh, guys, we'd better hurry up and get to the courtyard," Viper pressed. "We don't want Shifu to be mad at us."

We quickly finished the remainder of our breakfast and hurried outside, where Shifu was waiting for us.

"Students, I will join you for this journey. It will likely be even more grueling than traveling to Gongmen City," he told us. "But, of course, we must remain strong and get to our destination. It's time to leave, now!"

"Alright, here we go!" Po shouted, excited.

We charged down the Thousand Steps, and Po, surprisingly enough, didn't trip once.

"Wait!" Po called, skidding to a sharp halt.

We halted and looked back at him.

"Can I say goodbye to my dad first?" Po pleaded.

Shifu hesitated. "Fine, but hurry."

With a grateful nod, Po ran in the direction of his father's noodle shop. Silence took over until, several minutes later, Po came back, a smile on his face.

"Are you ready now?" Shifu asked him, obviously impatient.

"Yup! Let's go!" Po replied enthusiastically.

We all immediately ran forward, heading out of the city.

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We had been traveling for four days. The foxes last attack on us had been three weeks ago, and Jiānruì-Lóng City had been destroyed a little less than a week ago.

Master Shifu had made sure that we got to our destination as soon as possible and, as a result, the majority of the journey was spent running or walking. We went to sleep at a decent time so that we could wake up early, have breakfast and continue traveling. We didn't pass by very many villages and, as Shifu had told us early in our journey, towns and cities were sparse. In fact, we only stopped by one town to replenish our food supply and sleep there, but other than that, we hadn't gone into any towns or villages.

"Can… can we eat… dinner now?" Po panted, directing his question towards Shifu.

"Very well," the red panda responded.

We found a good place to make camp and we split up. Viper and I were going to collect wood for a fire, Monkey and Po were going to find tinder to light the fire with and Mantis and Shifu were staying behind to watch over the camp.

"So…" Viper started, slithering beside me. "Do you like this journey so far?"

"I just hope that we can find the Crimson Knights and put an end to their plans and destruction," I answered honestly.

"Yeah…" Viper's voice drifted off.

We walked in silence, stopping several times to pick up pieces of wood. Finally, when we thought that we'd gathered enough, we headed back towards camp.

It didn't take long for Po and Monkey to get back and we soon had a fire going. I watched the smoke absentmindedly as we ate dinner, until Shifu started speaking.

"We should be able to see the city tomorrow, and if we hurry we might be able to reach it," he told us.

"And maybe even find the Crimson Knights!" Viper added enthusiastically, a smile on her face.

Master Shifu nodded in agreement, but there was doubt in his expression.

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My eyes went wide at the sight of the destroyed city.

Buildings were torn apart; some were even charred, giving evidence of a fire. Carnage was everywhere. The falling sun shed a reddish light to everything, giving it a more haunted appearance than it already had from the destruction.

"I… I can't believe it…" Po drifted off, his eyes wider than I'd ever seen them. He walked forward a few paces and bent down, picking something up. As he straightened up I angled myself so that I could see that he was holding a small goose doll, parts of it being torn or singed. Tears filled the panda's eyes.

"Who could ever be so heartless?" Crane said weakly.

"The Crimson Knights… how could they?" Viper added sorrowfully.

"Those heartless foxes!" I shouted, slamming my fist into a nearby tree. I hit it so hard, a large crack formed in the bark where I had hit it.

Suddenly Po cried out, his voice coated with pain. Turning to him, my eyes dilated with shock when I saw the arrow protruding from his shoulder. The dropped doll fell to the ground.

I immediately ducked as a familiar noise reached my ears; an arrow zipped right over me. Looking around, I spotted two archers. Both were perched high in the trees above us.

"Surround them!"

I whirled around at the sound of Chóuhèn's voice. She was running from the thick of the trees and right at us. The rest of the Crimson Knights were right behind her. I got into a fighting stance.

"Well, aren't you a fighter?" Chóuhèn said, stopping in front of me. "You've somehow managed to survive everything we've thrown at you. But this time, I'll make sure you stay dead! Knights, attack!"

I sprinted at her, completely intent on defeating her again. When two foxes came at me, I simply jumped and did the splits in mid-air, taking both of them out at the same time. Chóuhèn smirked and got into a fighting stance herself.

Reaching her, I punched at her face. She deflected it but I relentlessly kept punching and kicking at her. Finally, after several seconds, I landed a solid hit to her chest, which sent her into a tree. I had put so much force into the strike that the trunk of the tree cracked. With a creaking sound, it started tipping in the direction of the female fox.

With a yelp, Chóuhèn scrambled away from the falling tree. Still, it narrowly missed her tail as it crashed to the ground, sending dirt and ash into the air as we were still by Jiānruì-Lóng City.

Growling, she got back to her feet and glared at me as I walked toward her.

"Why did you destroy Jiānruì-Lóng City?" I questioned angrily. "I thought you said that the Crimson Knights want to _rule _China, not destroy it!"

"You are so foolish!" Chóuhèn taunted. "Did you seriously believe me? You should have known that I was lying!"

Suddenly, it all came together; she was so easy to question and she hadn't fought back until she felt that I was asking too much. _Of course! _I thought, narrowing my eyes. _I should've known why she was so easy to catch and question!_

"You're trying to destroy China!" I snarled. "Why would you ever do such a thing?"

"Isn't it obvious?" she barked back. "China has defeated us too many times! It is time for our revenge. We have been plotting this for nearly a century!"

My eyes widened. She _had _to be telling the truth now. What she was saying made complete sense. Well, mostly. Still, I didn't trust this fox or any of the Crimson Knights.

"Finally," Chóuhèn continued, "we will take what is ours! But we don't wish to rule a place where everyone and everything is against us. No, we will destroy anyone and anything that defies us!"

"No," I replied, my tone harsh.

"No?" she repeated, slightly confused.

"You cannot destroy everyone in your path," I explained, growling at her and showing my fangs and claws. "Because you'll have to get through us first!"

I immediately lunged at her with a roar. I was trying to keep my anger in check, but I could feel my control start to slip.

Chóuhèn leapt back and my fist connected with the hard ground. I sprang back at the fox. She jumped over me and, in mid-air, tried to slash me with her claws. Already expecting this, I ducked, twisted and kicked; she was sent to the rough ground, clutching her stomach.

I took a deep breath, attempting to hold off my anger. Thankfully, it worked.

Adrenaline pulsing through me, I charged forward on all fours, jumping at the last second and performing a front flip to kick the back of my enemy's head. She pitched forward, howling with pain.

Hearing her howl, several foxes came to help her. They were all defeated easily.

Stalking up to Chóuhèn, I pinned her to the ground.

"Give up now, Chóuhèn," I snarled. "Or face the consequences."

"I'll never give up to you!" she yipped back. Then she grinned. "But you will give up when _you _face the consequences of defying the Crimson Knights!"

Abruptly she barked three times; I was roughly shoved off of the leader as a few foxes came to her rescue. Chóuhèn jumped to her paws and lead her 'gang' of foxes away. I glared after them as they disappeared into the forest.

"Are you okay?" Viper asked, helping me up.

"I'm fine," I answered. Then, remembering what happened to Po, I looked around until I spotted him. "Po!"

"What?" he responded, turning to face me.

"Your shoulder," I reminded him. "Are you alright?"

He glanced at his shoulder where the arrow was protruding from and promptly began freaking out. "Oh no! I've been hit! Am I gonna die? I hope not! I need to save China and help my dad with his noodles! I can't die now—Ow!"

He was interrupted by Monkey slapping his face. "Get a hold of yourself!"

"Monkey is right," Shifu intervened, bandages and what looked like some sort of a first aid kit in his hands. "You will not die. Just let us clean up your wound and take care of you. You will be fine."

"Are you sure?" Po continued, still visibly fretting as he sat down.

"Yes," Shifu reassured.

Po remained relatively silent while Shifu took care of his shoulder.

"Shouldn't we get moving?" Crane suggested timidly after Po was cleaned up.

Shifu shook his head in response. "For now we should camp for the night. It will be getting dark soon; we only have an hour of daylight left."

"I'll get wood!" Po exclaimed. "Mantis, do you want to come with me?"

"Sure," he replied with a grin. He returned to being serious for a moment. "You had better be careful with your shoulder though."

"I will!" Po defended as he and Mantis walked off into the forest. "I'll just pick things up with my other hand!"

We split up to get things done faster and we had the camp set up and a fire going within a half-hour.

"Get some sleep," Shifu advised as we finished dinner. "Just before the sun rises we will resume following the Crimson Knights; they might lead us to their base."

We nodded and obeyed.

* * *

><p><strong>I don't know about you, but, to me at least, I think that that was a pretty exciting chapter!<strong>

**Reviews are much appreciated. Also, please let me know of any mistakes! :)**

**I would love to thank **_**FyreDragon5, Cryztalix, Bee Sohma, OscarMerrinoz96, AnimationGirl, **_**and**_** I love brave people **_**for their awesome reviews! You guys rock!**

**Have a great day/night, everyone!**

**10/5/13**


	9. Stories

_**IMPORTANT NOTE:**_** This story will be slightly revised soon. I'm doing it to make sure that my stories achieve their full potential! **_**This chapter has been revised!**_

**Here's chapter nine!**

**This chapter starts in Po's POV.**

* * *

><p>"Po, how is your shoulder?" Shifu addressed me.<p>

"I think it's okay… I mean, it still hurts, but it's nothing too bad," I answered, watching as he came over and looked my shoulder over.

"You should be fine to travel tomorrow," the aged red panda reported. "Let me know if it begins to bother you." He went and sat back down next to Tigress and Viper.

We sat in silence around our little campfire. Something was different. The mood was more… tense and depressed than how happy we had been before finding the destroyed city. I guessed it was because of the events that happened earlier. I noticed that Tigress was staring at the moon, obviously lost in thought. I watched her, but she didn't notice me. Her face was expressionless, revealing nothing of what she felt. I wondered silently what she was feeling and thinking. I opened my mouth to speak to her, but then closed it after thinking it over.

Finally, she blinked and shook her head slightly. I quickly looked away, not wanting her to know that I had been watching her.

"What were you thinking about?" I tentatively asked her, looking back at her with curiosity.

"Nothing," she responded casually.

"… Okay…" I drifted off, unsure of what to say.

She sighed. "Goodnight," she said to us as she walked to her sleeping mat. Curling up into a half-ball, she closed her eyes.

* * *

><p>"What do you think <em>that<em> was about?" I heard Mantis ask Po. Apparently, they thought that I was asleep.

"Who knows?" Po replied.

"I mean, what do you think that she was thinking about?" Mantis pressed.

"How should I know? It's not like I can read her mind!"

"I know that! Just answer the question!"

"Um… I seriously don't know."

"Guys, I don't think that Tigress is asleep yet," Viper cut in.

I forced myself to relax completely. My tactic worked.

"Nah. She looks so relaxed, how could she be awake?" Po said.

"And it is time for you to go to sleep as well," Master Shifu advised. "Tomorrow we will get everything ready and we will chase the Crimson Knights."

"Okay. Goodnight, guys!" Po called as, I assumed, he went to his mat.

The others returned the nightly farewell and soon silence dominated the air. The only thing that disturbed the quiet was the crackling of the fire which was quickly fading, as it now had no one to tend to it to keep it going.

I tried to sleep, but I felt more restless than I had for a long time. When I heard a sudden noise, I went rigid.

I pricked my ears, listening for anything out of the ordinary. But nothing else sounded in my ears. Opening my eyes slightly, I immediately sprang to my feet and punched Chóuhèn in her face.

Breathing rapidly from the abrupt surprise, I relaxed slightly and watched as the fox stumbled backward, clutching her nose and dropping a dagger. I was about to shout a warning to my friends, but something hit the back of my head and everything went black.

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I quickly blinked open my eyes. It didn't take long to remember what had happened: I hadn't been able to fall asleep, I had heard something and when I had opened my eyes, Chóuhèn had been standing over me, dagger poised to strike. I had hit the canine away, but then something had hit the back of my head…

I could clearly feel the dull throbbing of my head, and I figured that a fox that had been behind me had hit me with a tree branch or weapon.

I then became aware of my surroundings. Master Shifu and my friends were, of course, all awake. Foxes surrounded them; their weapons all pointed at the Kung Fu warriors. Shifting experimentally, I found that my hands were tied behind my back and I was on my knees. I glanced at the remnants of the fire, finding that I had only been unconscious for a minute or two.

I was about to move toward my friends, when I suddenly felt the cold steel of a blade against my throat. Turning my head slightly, I saw that it was Chóuhèn that was holding the knife.

"Oh good, you're awake," she said, an evil smirk on her face. "Now we can begin the negotiation."

I narrowed my eyes at her and growled angrily, but I didn't utter a word. The nefarious fox turned her gaze from me to look at my friends.

"If you want your _friend_ alive, then you will do what I say and surrender to us." Chóuhèn's smirk grew. "Unless you really want her to die."

"Don't do it!" I commanded. "It's not worth it!"

"Quiet!" the female fox snarled, putting a little more pressure on my throat. I glared at her.

"We have to, Tigress!" Po contradicted, his eyes wide. "We can't just leave you!"

I gave him the most reassuring smile I could muster. "Don't worry about me," I told him and the others. "Just escape. I'll find my own way out of this."

Chóuhèn's smirk disappeared, and her eyes flashed angrily. "You aren't going to leave her," she said to my friends, giving them a look that could kill. She pressed the blade into my neck, and I felt a cut start to form.

"I…" Po's voice drifted off.

"Just go!" I shouted.

"Tigress is right," Shifu encouraged. "No matter how much we do not like it."

Chóuhèn narrowed her eyes. "Let them go," she instructed the foxes, and they complied by making a 'pathway' out of their ranks, allowing my friends a way to run.

"I'll be fine," I assured them, hoping to sound believable.

"But—" Po started, but Shifu cut him off.

"Po, we must go, and now," my Master commanded. My eyes widened in surprise when I heard the pain in his voice.

Po gave me one last longing look before turning away with the others, who also had pained expressions on their faces. They ran away, and I hoped that they would be able to get far away from here.

Chóuhèn laughed darkly, removing the blade from my throat and kicking me onto my side.

"Are you happy now?" she taunted, glaring at me. "You got what you wanted." Her eyes gleamed with malice. "And now you're going to suffer the consequences."

* * *

><p>"Why the heck did you make us leave her?" I yelled angrily. "I thought that we should never abandon a friend!"<p>

"Yes, but I know that Tigress can handle herself. Plus, she will undoubtedly find more about the Crimson Knights," Shifu retorted.

"Is that all you care about?" I replied sharply. "Do you just want information? Don't you care about Tigress at all?"

Shifu flattened his ears against his head and his tone was dangerous. "You have no right to talk back to me like that, panda."

"Po, calm down," Viper said, laying the tip of her tail on my arm, obviously trying to soothe me, but I noticed that she wasn't happy about Shifu's decision either.

"I will not calm down! We just gave Tigress to the enemy!"

"Po—"

"We have to save her!"

"_Po_—"

"Don't _any _of you care about her?"

"_PO!"_

"What?" I glared at Viper.

"Po, of course we care about her! But she can take care of herself and she will escape on her own. She's done it before," Viper said.

Surprise replaced my anger. "What? She has? When?"

"It was a while ago, just a little less than a year before you… joined us," Viper started. "Shifu sent Tigress on a mission to spy on a bunch of crocodiles, but she was discovered and captured. She was caught because there were so many crocs; she didn't give in willingly. And she took out nearly twenty of them, too! Anyway, she was tied up to a tree in their camp, and they sent a letter to Shifu telling him that he had Tigress and was going to kill her if we didn't do what the crocs wanted.

"Master Shifu sent us to go and rescue Tigress, but when we got there, we found that Tigress had broken the rope she was tied with and had already taken out half of the crocs. Basically, we didn't need to do very much, because Tigress had pretty much escaped completely. We just helped her take down the remaining crocodiles," Viper finished.

I stared at her, wide-eyed. "Whoa," I muttered, awed at the tale. "That's… severely cool."

Viper nodded, a smile on her face.

"Oh yeah!" Mantis agreed. "She was beating those crocs so badly, they were almost cowering! She was taking them out left and right!"

"Yeah; we didn't have to do hardly anything to help her," Crane added. "I don't think she even needed help."

"Alright, enough campfire stories," Shifu said, although he, too, had a smile on his face. It was all too obvious that he was proud of Tigress. "Time to go to sleep."

"Okay, okay," I replied, putting my hands up. "But don't you think that Tigress is awesome?"

"Of course she is," Shifu responded. "Now go to sleep."

Saying our 'goodnights' to each other, we all got in our beds and fell asleep.

* * *

><p>I groggily opened my eyes, only to see complete darkness. My head felt sore and I felt half asleep, so I tried to shake myself awake.<p>

I felt my pupils dilate as I tried to see where I was. I couldn't remember much, other than the fact that Chóuhèn had knocked me out again shortly after my friends had escaped.

Finally, my eyes picked up the faintest light and I saw that I was in some sort of wooden dungeon, but the wall I was chained to was solid rock. Shifting experimentally, I found that my wrists and ankles were bound by shackles, which lead to the top of the wall for my wrists and for my ankles the shackles were connected to the base. I growled when I felt the metal half-brace around my neck. It was also imbedded in the wall, making it impossible for me to move much without getting choked. I discovered that the only reason I wasn't getting choked by the metal ring was the similar braces on my arms and legs, which were, of course, also lodged in the wall.

I sighed in exasperation when I realized that I was trapped; I couldn't break the shackles around my wrists without hurting and choking myself.

"So you're awake."

I looked up at the sound of her voice as she stepped into the room, illuminating the strange prison cell with light. I squinted until my eyes adjusted.

"I honestly didn't think that you would awaken so soon. I mean, it's only been a few minutes since we got you up there," Chóuhèn commented, making eye contact with me.

I clenched my fists and remained silent.

"Not willing to talk? Not that I really want any information from you, except for one thing."

I narrowed my eyes. "What?"

Chóuhèn grinned. "First, I want the names of the animals you were with."

I hesitated, wondering why she would want their names. Of course, I had no idea. "Why do you want to know?"

"My reasons are my own, Tigress."

I immediately flattened my ears aggressively against my head. "How do you know my name?" I questioned harshly.

"The panda said it," the canine claimed. "I didn't have to listen very carefully."

I glared at her, unblinking. Chóuhèn stared back, but amusement lit her eyes instead of anger.

"You have quite the temper," she mentioned. "And you're quite intimidating when you glare at me like that. The only reason I'm not 'scared' is because you are in chains, and I know that you can't do anything."

"You underestimate me," I countered, scowling at her.

"Not anymore," the fox contradicted. "I've done that too many times already. Tell me, how do you plan on escaping your bonds?"

"Like I would tell you," I snarled.

"Excuses, excuses." Chóuhèn chuckled. "It's too obvious that you don't have a plan."

She grew serious again and tilted her head slightly to the side. "I will not kill you," she said. "Yet. And I'll give you some relief; torture won't begin until tomorrow. Enjoy your sanity while you still have it."

And with that, the nefarious fox left and closed the wooden door behind her, leaving me in darkness once more.

* * *

><p>"Oh great," I muttered sarcastically. "Which way now?"<p>

We were following the Crimson Knights' tracks, but the path was split in two; one went left, toward a huge forest, while the other went right, towards the mountains.

"Crane," Shifu instructed, "fly as high as you can and see if you can find any hints as to which way they went with Tigress."

The avian nodded and launched himself into the air. He flew so high, I could barely distinguish him against the dark sky.

Finally, he dove toward the ground, speeding through the air like an arrow. He spread his wings just a couple seconds before he hit the ground; he lifted back into the air just above the grass and flapped his wings to land gracefully.

"Is something wrong?" Master Shifu asked, noticing how fast Crane had come back.

"Yeah," Crane answered. "The Crimson Knights have lookouts on some of the lower mountains over there and they spotted me. I saw them running farther into the mountains," he reported, pointing with his wing at the craggy mountains.

"Then we had better set up camp in those woods and try to make the foxes believe that we're headed the wrong way," Shifu replied.

We nodded in agreement and followed him into the dense forest. We traveled for some time before the red panda stopped in a tiny clearing.

"We will sleep here tonight. We will take turns keeping watch, and be very alert," Shifu told us quietly. "The Crimson Knights could hide anywhere in these trees."

We soon had a small campfire made, and we all sat around it as we ate.

"So…" I started slowly. "Are there any more stories that you can tell me?" I asked, sincerely wanting to hear more about the Five's adventures.

"Oh yeah, there's a lot!" Monkey answered. "Where do we begin?"

They glanced at each other.

"What about the time when we had to stop those thieves?" Mantis suggested, grinning. "That was pretty cool."

"And dangerous!" Crane added.

"What happened?" I inquired, extremely intrigued.

Viper smiled. "We were just starting our training one day, I think it was two years ago?"

"Sometime around there," Monkey said, nodding.

"Anyway, Master Shifu interrupted us because he had received a letter saying that a nearby village was being ransacked by a bunch of boars," Viper continued. "So, of course, we went to go and 'take care' of the criminals. It didn't take long to get there, only a few minutes, but the village was being torn down by a large gang of angry-looking boars that were stealing everything they could get their hooves on. Citizens of the village were trying to save everything they could, but the boars were destroying anything that stood in their way. When the boars noticed us, they attacked us immediately. They all had swords or axes.

"We were outnumbered ten to one, but we nearly matched their skill. Tigress, of course, was fighting the leader. She was beating him pretty badly, too."

"It was _way _fun to watch," Mantis added, smirking. "He was totally getting his butt kicked!"

"Weren't you guys fighting the others?" I asked.

"Yeah, but we were done with them about five minutes into the battle," Monkey answered.

"Anyway, Tigress was beating him really badly," Viper said, "but then, just when we thought that the boar was done for, he kicked Tigress. Tigress, since the leader was on the ground, hadn't expected the kick, and he hit her feet out from under her. Tigress was barely able to control her landing, but the boar got up and kicked her side. We tried to get in the fight and help Tigress, but she refused help, saying that she could handle him. She got up and kept fighting the leader, and ended up knocking him out by kicking him into a building," Viper finished.

"That's so awesome!" I exclaimed, throwing my hands into the air.

"Yeah," Mantis laughed. "He sure learned a valuable lesson; never make Tigress mad!"

We all laughed at the truth in his comment.

"That is enough for tonight," Shifu said, humor lighting his eyes despite how he tried to hide it. "Go to sleep now, students. I will take the first watch."

"Okay, goodnight guys!" I yawned. "See you in the morning."

"Goodnight," the others returned and we all, except for Shifu, got onto our sleeping mats and settled down for the night.

* * *

><p><strong>AAAAUUUUUUUGGGGHHHHH! Even <strong>_**I **_**didn't expect Tigress to get captured! Those foxes are so evil that they're trying to take over the story itself! =O**

**Uh, anyway, I would love to thank the reviewers; **_**FyreDragon5, AnimationGirl, Cryztalix, CristenMarie1695, **_**and**_** OscarMerrinoz96. **_**You people are super awesome! Thank you so much; you're the reason why this story keeps on goin'!**

**Have a great day/night, everyone!**

**10/16/13**


	10. The Fortress

_**IMPORTANT NOTE:**_** This story will be slightly revised soon. I'm doing it to make sure that my stories achieve their full potential! **_**This chapter has been slightly revised!**_

**Hey everyone! Here's chapter ten! The big double-digit number!**

**Anyway, this chapter starts in Po's point of view. =D Enjoy!**

* * *

><p>"So we have to sneak through the mountains without being seen, where Crimson Knights could be anywhere?" I summed up, looking down at the small red panda.<p>

"Correct," Shifu replied, smiling slightly. "And we must hurry."

"Right… Stealth Mode." I grinned.

Monkey, Mantis, Crane, and Viper simultaneously groaned.

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We had been traveling for nearly four hours, and the only thing in sight was the rough terrain of the large mountain. Everything was eerily quiet, something that all of us found unusual and unnerving. We were all on our highest alert and I honestly expected a bunch of foxes to jump out at us at any second. But everything remained almost silent.

I didn't like it.

I jumped nearly every time the small noise of a rock against rock sounded, which was quite often, considering that the earth was somewhat loose where we were treading. It didn't help calm my worry that we were walking on a narrow trail; we only had about six inches to walk on either side of us, and after that, a sheer drop plummeted more than thirty feet down, which would undoubtedly hurt or kill us.

I was trying to be careful, but every now-and-then my foot would slip on the loose gravel and I would have to regain my balance quickly. The others were just fine for the majority of our travel.

"Wait."

I jerked my head up and halted right behind Shifu, obeying his command.

"What's wr—"

"Quiet," my Master interrupted me.

His ears were pricked to pick up any and every sound; it was obvious that he had heard something. I perked up, listening to try and hear what Shifu had heard, but my ears didn't pick up anything. I stared at Shifu. He was completely still; his ears were the only thing that moved. I looked around, worried. What had Shifu heard?

He abruptly motioned for us to follow him and we complied soundlessly. We were almost jogging, and it was very hard for me to keep my footsteps on the rocks silent.

I somehow managed to keep my feet somewhat quiet as we followed Shifu, who had his ears facing forward. Finally, I heard a noise as it steadily grew louder. Eventually, Shifu stopped us with a raised hand. I looked at what had stopped him and my eyes widened.

A massive, wooden building stood in a large clearing. Some parts of it were metal, but it was mostly a very dark wood that almost blended with the color of the metal. The structure took up almost half of the valley, which stretched for about a half-mile. The building wasn't very tall, only about three stories high, but what it lacked in height it made up for in style. Spires topped four towers, one at each corner. Parts of the structure were made of rock or metal, and I noticed that torches were connected to those parts, particularly on the small towers. Other than that, it almost looked like Shen's factory, only it was smaller, looked more like a castle, and was made mostly of wood.

Barking came from inside and around the building; foxes were prowling everywhere, obviously on guard. I realized why the building was so hidden; the valley dipped steadily downward over thirty feet, and mountains and cliffs surrounded it on every side, except for one small part, which was where Shifu had lead us to.

Squinting, I managed to spot small shapes standing in the all-around, glassless window of the tower, making me realize that they weren't just for looks; the towers were for foxes to hide in and see danger approaching.

"Wow," I breathed, awed.

Shifu nodded silently in agreement. "We must find a way inside."

"What? But look at this place! It's guarded more tightly than the prison Tai-Lung was in!" I exclaimed quietly.

The others gave me a look that clearly stated 'Really?' in an exasperated manner.

"… Okay, so maybe not _that _much, but still!" I defended myself.

They turned their gazes back to the Crimson Knights' fortress.

"We will camp a safe distance from here and try to sneak in at night," Shifu instructed.

We nodded our agreement and followed Master Shifu as he walked away from the fortress.

* * *

><p>"You're weak."<p>

I kept my glare on Chóuhèn, ignoring her taunting.

"You can't even find a way to break your bonds without killing yourself."

"Why, do you want me to?" I snarled back.

The fox shook her head. "I never said that, Tigress."

I continued to glower at her. Chóuhèn smirked.

"Aren't you feisty? But don't worry; I'll break you of that soon enough." She chuckled. "Everyone before you has broken down within just a couple days of torture." Her smile dimmed. "But I've been commanded not to start torture until tomorrow."

I tried to hide my astonishment at what she just said. _Is she taking orders from someone else?_

Chóuhèn laughed and gave a sarcastic surprised look. "Oops, did I just say that aloud? Yes, Tigress, I'm not the real commander of the Crimson Knights."

I opened my mouth slightly to reply, but closed it again as the fox continued.

"No, I alone cannot command over a hundred foxes. And don't you remember the legend? The part that said, 'They were all foxes, but their master was always another kind of animal'? Well, you obviously didn't give it much thought."

I stared at her, trying to discern if she was telling the truth or not.

Abruptly the door opened and I stared with absolute disbelief at what I saw.

* * *

><p>I yawned, exhausted. Shifu had decided to camp about a half-mile away, resulting in a long walk, and we had had some difficulty climbing up some huge rocks. Now, I groaned at the thought of climbing back down all of them.<p>

"We need to come up with a strategy," Shifu told us. "Do any of you have ideas?"

"Yeah," I said, trying to blink sleep away from my eyes. "What if we sleep?"

Master Shifu was not amused.

I shrank at his glare, suddenly afraid that he would hit me. Thankfully, he didn't.

"Anything _else?" _he asked us.

"What if we sneak around the back?" Crane suggested. "There might not be as many guards."

Shifu nodded. "A good start. We will try that, but any ideas on what to do when we get inside?"

"We could just tear through the place until we find Tigress," Mantis said, excited.

Shifu rolled his eyes. "Any realistic plans?" he specified.

"We could ask a guard," Monkey proposed. "After tying him up or something, of course."

The red panda nodded in agreement. "You may rest now. I will wake you when we must set out."

We nodded, agreeing happily. Once I was on my mat-thing, sleep came quickly.

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I stared at the guards that stalked around the back of the fortress. Each one had a torch, which shed quite a bit of light overall, since there were about ten guards.

"There's a break," Viper told us, pointing with her tail to a place where two guards had just passed each other by a door.

"It is very brief though," Shifu said. "We must go one at a time."

"This is gonna take a while, isn't it?" I groaned.

"Yes, so be patient," Shifu commanded sharply. "We will go through the door down there."

"What if it's locked?" I inquired.

"Kick it down quietly. If any guards hear, take cover in those bushes." He pointed at a small cluster of bushes. "I will go first."

When the small break came, Shifu darted forward, running right past the guards, who had their backs toward him, and took cover in the bushes. He gestured us forward.

We prepared to run and, when the time came, all five of us sprinted forward at once. We gave each other slightly surprised looks; we hadn't meant to go at the same time.

Still, we made it. Jumping behind the bushes, we watched Shifu, waiting for orders.

With a small jerk of his head he motioned for us to try the door. We looked at each other and finally decided through various hand gestures that Monkey was the one who would try the door. When the break came, Monkey charged to the door and gave a hard tug on it.

It didn't budge.

Shifu instantly charged forward and knocked the door down with a focused kick. The door crashed to the ground, which alerted two of the guards nearby of our presence.

The two guards were defeated swiftly with a few jabs and kicks and we all hoped that we weren't too loud.

Running inside and over the fallen metal door, we quickly found a guard and pinned him against the wall.

"Where is your prison hold?" Shifu questioned, his tone harsh.

"I'm not telling," the fox snarled.

Shifu put more pressure on his neck. "You _will _tell me!"

"Alright, alright!" the canine rasped.

Shifu loosened his grip and the fox gasped for breath.

"The prison is in the lower part of the fortress, underground. Take the stairs in the left part of the base," the dog reported hurriedly, fear evident on his face.

"Good." Shifu knocked out the fox quickly and let him slump to the floor.

Shifu motioned for us to follow him and we were soon sprinting through the fortress.

"Intruders! Intruders!"

The call sounded not two minutes later. The stairs the fox had mentioned were in sight but several foxes immediately ran in our way. With a loud battle cry, we plunged into the fight.

"Yeah!" I shouted as I delivered a roundhouse kick to three foxes, knocking them back. "Taste the defeat!"

More foxes streamed toward the battle, joining as soon as they reached us. Most had swords, but others had different weapons.

I dodged a blade and kicked the owner away, then turned to punch another fox in the face. He stumbled back into another fox, sending them both to the ground. I rolled under a sword and spun around on my head, hitting several foxes away. Seeing a hammer swinging down towards my head I hurriedly used my hands to push myself off the ground and land on my feet. Twisting, I kicked the fox with the hammer in the face, sending him reeling backward. Grabbing the canines' fallen hammer, I turned and swung it at a group of approaching foxes. Letting the handle go, I flung it at them. They barked in surprise and tried to jump out of the way, but they were too slow and were bowled over by the large, twisting hammer.

"Get to the stairs!" Shifu commanded over the din of the battle. "Find Tigress!"

Glancing at the stairs, I saw that about fifteen foxes blocked the way. Yelling a battle cry, I charged at them, my friends at my side.

I ducked under a blade and swept my leg in a circle, tripping two foxes. Backing up toward the stairs, the foxes started to be driven back. I punched a fox's snout, sending it into another fox, and kicked a canine away. Dodging a hammer, I kicked it harshly upward. The fox gave a yowl of surprise as the hammer made contact with its head, knocking it out instantly. I hit another fox towards the stairs. Yipping in pain, it tried to stop its tumble but was unable to.

I ran for the stairs, taking immediate advantage of the small break of enemies. Charging down the stairs, I hopped over the fox's unconscious form and ran down a long hallway.

"Tigress?" I called. "Tigress! Where are you?"

"If you want to know, look for yourself."

I quickly jumped back, successfully avoiding getting slashed by Chóuhèn's poisoned claws.

"Where is she?" I asked, making my tone harsh and demanding. "What have to done to her?"

"Nothing yet," the canine replied nonchalantly, examining her claws casually. "But that will change soon enough. Oh, and she's in this cell." She motion to a metal door that was right next to her.

I gave her a suspicious look before running to the door. Chóuhèn did nothing to stop me as I roughly opened the door.

"Tigress!" I yelled upon seeing her.

She was, for lack of better words, chained spread-eagle on a stone wall. She looked fine, other than the panicked look on her face. I immediately had an awful feeling in the pit of my stomach and I knew something was very wrong.

"Po!" she shouted back. "Po, you have to get out of here! Behind you!"

I swiftly turned to look behind me but everything went black before I even saw what hit me.

* * *

><p>"You coward!" I snarled at the female fox.<p>

Chóuhèn had knocked Po out with the hilt of her dagger.

"And why am I a coward?" she taunted. "He's the one that had his back turned." She smirked evilly. "And now we have a new prisoner. Soon we will capture the others and no one can or will stop us!"

"You and your leader will fall," I growled. "You can't win."

She laughed. "And why can't we?"

I smiled at her and watched as Master Shifu, who was standing behind her, knocked her out with a swift kick to her head. Chóuhèn fell forward limply.

"What happened?" Shifu inquired as he ran over to me.

"She knocked Po out when he had his back turned," I answered simply.

Shifu nodded in understanding. "Time to get you out of here. Have they hurt you?"

"No."

"Good." He observed my bonds. "These are well made and put. Hold on."

I nodded my consent and he promptly jumped and, swinging himself around, kicked the brace that held my neck. It broke instantly and I grimaced as pain flashed through my throat.

"Are you alright?" Shifu asked, noticing my reaction.

"Yes," I responded.

Shifu then proceeded to destroy the rest of the chains, and I dropped roughly to the ground as he broke the last one. I landed on all fours, as I wasn't quite used to being back on my paws.

"Can you fight?"

I looked up at my Master, making eye contact with him. I narrowed my eyes in determination.

"Yes."

I stood, not the least bit shaky. I stretched, trying to get some feeling back into my arms and legs; after being suspended like I was for so long, my arms and legs had gone numb.

"I am ready," I told Shifu, looking down at him.

"Ugh… W… what's going on?"

We turned our gaze to the groggy panda as he sat up. "Where am I…? Oh yeah! Hey, Tigress, you're free!"

I smiled and nodded, helping him to his feet.

"Are you okay to fight?" I questioned, forcing my tone to be gentle.

Po nodded vigorously. "Oh yeah! C'mon, let's go!"

"Wait!" I called to him and Shifu as they started to run out. They stopped and faced me.

"Shifu, Chóuhèn isn't the real leader of the Crimson Knights!" I told him.

Both boys' eyes went wide. "What?" they exclaimed in unison.

"Their real leader is a different animal. Remember the legend? Their leader is a—" I was cut off by the noise of a nearby wall exploding. Debris flew everywhere and we were temporarily blinded by it.

I squinted as the dust cleared and looked at the now-destroyed wall before us.

"Tigress is right," said a voice. The voice sounded smooth and dangerous; I recognized it immediately.

"Chóuhèn is not the true leader of the Crimson Knights."

A figure stepped through the rubble of the wall. Its eyes didn't glow; they were as black as night.

"I am," the figure stated, stepping into the light.

Po and Shifu gasped at the animal, or, rather, at the lizard. Its scales were a light brown and its tail was about as long as its body. Its tongue appeared briefly as it scented the air.

"My name is Hēisè De Dúyè. Tigress already knows of me and you didn't until now," the Komodo dragon told my friend and Master.

"You are no match for me," Hēisè De Dúyè said, narrowing her eyes as she got into an attacking position. "Prepare to die!"

* * *

><p><strong>AAAAAAHHHHHHHHH! Gosh, I didn't even expect any of that! Except for the true leader of the Crimson Knights being a Komodo dragon. That, I've had planned for a long time.<strong>

**So, how'd you like it? This is definitely one of the most exciting chapters yet!**

**I would love to thank **_**FyreDragon5, bookworm600, OscarMerrinoz96, **_**and **_**AnimationGirl. **_**You guys are amazing!**

**Have a great day/night everyone!**

**10/18/13**


	11. Collapse

_**IMPORTANT NOTE:**_** This story will be slightly revised soon. I'm doing it to make sure that my stories achieve their full potential! _This chapter has been a bit revised!_**

**Here's chapter eleven! Whoo hoo! Thanks to all who reviewed!**

**This chapter starts in Tigress' POV.**

* * *

><p>Hēisè De Dúyè lunged forward, jaws agape. I barely managed to dodge her teeth as she attacked me.<p>

"Get upstairs!" Shifu commanded. "It will be easier to fight there!"

I nodded and jumped over the Komodo dragon, landing nimbly on the other side of her, close to the door. I, along with Po and Shifu, ran out of the half-destroyed room and up the stairs, emerging into a large room that was littered with unconscious foxes as well as a lot of conscious ones.

"We were starting to worry about you three!" Viper exclaimed, and them her eyes widened upon seeing the huge lizard that was chasing us.

I glanced back at Hēisè De Dúyè, who was surprisingly fast, and shoved Po out of the way as the Komodo dragon jumped at him. I jumped backward so that I was just out of the reach of Hēisè De Dúyè.

She abruptly twisted, swinging her heavy tail at my head. I ducked under it but she was much faster than I had thought and she was soon on top of me.

I gripped her wrists, trying to keep her claws away from me as her jaws snapped just a couple inches shy of my neck. I emitted a roar of effort and determination as I kicked her off of me.

"Don't let her bite you!" Shifu warned.

I didn't dare to look at my Master for fear that Hēisè De Dúyè would strike at me and hit her target.

"Why?" Po asked.

"Because Komodo dragons are venomous!"

My eyes widened slightly; I had known that Komodo dragons were dangerous, but I hadn't known that they were venomous.

I skillfully jumped over the lizard and landed behind her. Turning, I raised my foot and managed to kick the side of Hēisè De Dúyè's head. She stumbled slightly from the strong blow before quickly regaining her composure and lunging at me. I back-flipped away from her claws and kicked a fox into the wooden wall. Hēisè De Dúyè darted forward and jumped at the same time another fox assaulted me. I swiftly hit the fox away but wasn't fast enough to evade her attack.

I grimaced as her hind claws wrapped halfway around my throat and pinned me against the wall. My hands immediately moved to her scaly foot as I struggled to breathe. I attempted kicking her away, but she simply seized my ankles, rendering them useless. I thrashed in her grasp, trying to break free of her grip, but she just smirked.

"You fought so hard, warrior," she taunted. "But now you will face the consequences of fighting against the Crimson Knights!"

Suddenly she was bowled over by a white-and-reddish blur. I fell to the ground, gasping for air.

"Get away from her, you heartless villain!" Shifu shouted, landing in front of Hēisè De Dúyè, who was getting back to her feet. I was shocked to hear the force and protectiveness in his tone.

I stood and watched as Shifu launched himself at her, kicking her into a nearby wall. Splinters of wood flew everywhere; I jumped away so as to not be hit.

I darted forward again when the sawdust cleared and sprang at Hēisè De Dúyè, claws and fangs bared. She rolled out of the way and twisted; I barely escaped her claws by ducking. Shifu hit her side, sending her stumbling. I lunged at her before she could regain her composure and she fell back with an angry shout of pain. I grinned slightly to myself as my master and I fought her back, side-to-side.

Abruptly she turned in a complete circle, hitting both me and Shifu away with her long tail.

"This place is made of wood for a reason," she warned, smirking evilly at us. "Crimson Knights! Fire and escape!"

I stared at her in confusion for a brief moment before being hit roughly by a fox. I shook my head to clear it and stood again. My eyes widened in terror and realization. The Crimson Knights, including Hēisè De Dúyè, were all fleeing out of the building. But that wasn't what was scaring me.

It was the fact that they had torn the torches from the walls and had thrown them onto the floor, setting fire to the place.

"We need to get out of here!" I shouted, looking for an exit.

The Crimson Knights had destroyed the doors; rubble was covering every exit. I narrowed my eyes in determination.

"Follow me!" I commanded, running at the closest wall.

Jumping and kicking, I easily kicked through the wall, creating a hole big enough for us all to get through. Immediately I had to thrust my fist forward to knock an arrow off course. Spotting the archers, I pointed them out to my friends and master. My eyes widened when I noticed that the arrows being shot at us were lit on fire, helping the fire that was already blazing behind us engulf the mostly wooden fortress.

"Run!" I instructed, redirecting a few more arrows before following my companions.

My ears automatically angled toward the building as it creaked, revealing that it couldn't take much more of the flames. Glancing at it, I realized that we weren't the only thing being shot at; the archers were deliberately shooting the fortress at every angle, making the fire grow much faster.

"Hurry!" I urged, running up behind Po and hitting him forcefully forward, sending him flying several yards.

He hurriedly got back to his feet and kept running, but I feared that the building behind us would collapse before we were in the clear. I put on another burst of speed, quickly catching up to the others. I kept pace with them, determined to make sure that they were safe; their safety was more important than mine.

Glancing to the right, I saw that the archers were aiming at us now; looking behind us, I watched in horror as the enormous fortress started tipping in our direction with an incredibly loud _crack_.

Determined to keep my friends and master safe I turned my gaze back to the ground in front of me. Running in a zigzag pattern to avoid the slew of fire-tipped arrows, I glanced behind us again to see the collapsing building make contact with the ground. I immediately flattened my ears against my head at the din; it was almost as loud as thunder.

And all of this happened within several seconds.

"Keep going!" I commanded my friends as they slowed. "Get out of the valley!"

They obeyed me and kept running, Master Shifu in front of all of us.

Finally, we slowed to a stop as we passed the edge of the valley and we turned to watch as the fortress completed its collapse. My eyes widened as dust exploded through the air, flames and ashes going with it. The wind from the building hit us; nearly knocking us off our feet it was so strong. It only lasted for a couple of seconds, however, and I regained my balance quickly. Looking briefly over at my friends, I made sure that they were all okay.

"Is everyone alright?" Shifu asked, voicing my worries.

"Yeah," Po answered, and the others, including me, nodded in agreement.

Master Shifu gave a quiet sigh of relief and gazed at the rubble that was left of the once mighty Crimson Knight fortress.

"Where do you think the Crimson Knights went?" Po inquired.

Almost immediately I heard a familiar sound and I hurriedly shoved Po out of the way of three arrows, which lodged themselves into the hard dirt not two inches away from where I now stood.

"Does that answer your question?"

We turned our heads simultaneously to look at an all-too-familiar fox.

Chóuhèn was standing on a tall, wide, rough rock, a smug smile on her face as she aimed her bow at me. She nocked an arrow and signaled with a flick of her ears to nine other foxes, all perched on separate rocks surrounding us.

I ducked and rolled, successfully escaping the three arrows that were headed for me. Launching myself onto the rock that Chóuhèn was on, I lunged at her.

She dodged my attack by swiftly jumping at the last second; I landed on all fours and glared at her as she landed a few feet away from me. She took an arrow from the quiver on her back and nocked it, aiming it carefully. We circled each other, glowering. I watched her every move, waiting for her to attack. Intense tension rose between us and I refused to even blink for fear of missing her shot.

Abruptly she fired; I rolled to the side. My eyes widened slightly when she simply nocked another arrow nearly lightning fast and shot it. I hopped over that one, but almost instantly found another one coming at me.

I slowly made my way toward her, but she just kept circling and shooting as if it was effortless. I narrowed my eyes and growled; she had to run out of arrows eventually.

But as the number of her arrows dwindled, she continued to get closer and closer to hitting me. I tried to change my way of escape several times; I rolled, jumped, ducked, and made several other maneuvers in an attempt to be constantly moving; I knew that if I stopped that I would get hit by either Chóuhèn's arrow or another fox's. Hearing Po suddenly shout out in pain, I was distracted for the briefest moment.

That was all the time Chóuhèn needed.

I saw her arrow barely too late and tried to dodge it, grimacing as the sharpened rock slit my shoulder as it passed. The female fox's eyes widened as I tackled her and pinned her to the ground, throwing her bow off the rock in the process. I placed my claws on Chóuhèn's throat, letting my claws unsheathe slowly.

"Fine!" she snarled. "Kill me!"

I hesitated. Did I really want to kill her? My anger told me yes, but I wasn't sure. Was it the right thing to do? I stared down into her red eyes, searching for evidence that this was some trick; was she really going to just let me kill her?

But inside I knew that killing her was wrong. Sheathing my claws, I got off her and backed away a few steps.

"I knew you wouldn't do it!" Chóuhèn said as she stood, smirking triumphantly. "You really _are _weak."

"No," I countered. "_You _are weak, Chóuhèn."

And with that I kicked her chest, sending her off the rock and to the rough ground nine feet below.

* * *

><p>After hearing Chóuhèn's startled yowl, the remaining five foxes were distracted.<p>

Trying my hardest to ignore the minor pain in my back which was caused by an arrow that had grazed it, I threw a good-sized rock at an archer, knocking him out instantly as it hit his head. I turned away as he fell off the rock and crashed to the ground. I watched as Crane, Mantis, Monkey and Master Shifu took out the other four foxes.

Joining them as they ran towards the rock that Tigress and Chóuhèn had been fighting on, we looked up to see Tigress standing tall on the large rock. She temporarily didn't seem to notice us as she watched Chóuhèn get up from the ground and run off.

She leapt down to us and turned to face us; she had landed a few feet behind us.

"Tigress, are you okay?" I asked her, noticing her shoulder.

She glanced at the cut and shrugged. "It honestly doesn't hurt very much. What about you?"

"Oh, this?" I tried to look at my back where my own shallow cut was and failed completely. "Pff, it doesn't hurt. Nerves of steel, remember?"

Humor lit her eyes. "Right."

"We should eat quickly and follow the Knights," Shifu suggested.

We nodded and complied happily. It wasn't long until the sun was rising and we were eating breakfast.

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"Where are we going, anyway?" I asked with a large yawn.

We had been traveling for hours and although it was midday, I felt exhausted.

"We're following the Knights," Tigress replied simply. She now had a thin bandage covering her cut, as did I.

"You're tired already?" Mantis inquired, amusement in his voice.

"… Well it was a long fight, okay?" I responded.

Mantis just smiled and turned his gaze back to the road ahead.

I could feel my energy draining with each step and I knew that I couldn't continue for much longer.

"When can we stop?" I whined. "It's getting late, anyway."

"Po, it's the middle of the day," Viper said gently. "We're not going to stop until the sun starts setting."

"… Can someone carry me then?"

"No." Tigress sent a brief look of annoyance in my direction. "Now stop whining. You're only wasting more energy by doing that."

"But—"

Tigress silenced me with a look.

Silence took over for a long time and it felt like we had been walking for hours when we finally stopped for lunch. I collapsed on the small patch of grass that we had found and relaxed completely; I let out a content sigh as I felt some of my exhaustion fade slightly.

"Po, get up. Do you want to eat or not?" Tigress ordered. "We've got to hurry if we want to stay on the Crimson Knights' trail."

I mumbled discontentedly as I sat up and received my portion of lunch. We ate in silence, and I wondered quietly why everyone seemed so tense all of a sudden.

I shivered as a cold wind suddenly picked up.

"There's a storm coming," Tigress observed as her whiskers twitched. "And a bad one. We should find shelter as soon as we can; the storm is moving fast."

We packed everything back up and continued along the trail, renewed strength helping us to walk faster. Glancing behind us, I caught sight of the black, ominous clouds moving swiftly toward us. Tigress was right; the pitch-black clouds made it obvious that the storm would be terrible.

* * *

><p>We had been searching for shelter for only about fifteen minutes when we heard the first crash of thunder, which was followed by the wind increasing its speed nearly tenfold.<p>

"We have to find shelter, now!" Viper announced. It was unnecessary, however; everyone already knew that piece of information.

Angling my ears backward as a pelting sound reached them, I turned my head, my eyes widening at the sight behind us. Rain was hitting the ground in waves; waves that were coming right toward us. I wasn't the only one that noticed it.

"The rain's coming!" Po warned, a second before it hit.

Surprisingly enough, the rain droplets actually stung ever so slightly as they hit us ruthlessly. We were soaked within seconds. I squinted; it was difficult to see through the constant mist the rain made.

Light flashed and immediately thunder boomed. I briefly looked toward the sky; the streaks of lightning were clearly visible as it branched outward, creating a beautiful but terrifying sight. I turned my gaze back to the drenched dirt and rock as I tried to see if there were any caves.

"Over there!" I yelled over the tumult of the storm, pointing at an opening in the rock. "Follow me!"

I made my way to the cave, shivering. The freezing wind was enough, but the fact that we were all soaked to the bone and dripping made it much worse.

I finally made it to the entrance of the gaping hole in the mountain and waited for the others to go inside before following them.

My eyes adjusted quickly and I gazed around the cave curiously. It had a high ceiling that was several feet above our heads and was quite deep; the back of the cave was at least five yards away from the front where we had come in and it was difficult to see back that far. Stalagmites reached upward, some of them joining various sizes of stalactites. As far as I could tell, the cave was unoccupied.

"Anyone here?" Po called, his voice echoing through the cave. "Guess not," he muttered, although I could barely hear him over the din of the storm.

"We will wait here until the storm settles," Shifu informed us, wringing water from his clothes. "Get as dry as you can before you go to sleep."

I walked to the side of the cave and shook myself as hard as I could, sending hundreds of water droplets everywhere. Smoothing my fur down with my hands, I got my sleeping mat and laid it close to the center of the cave, next to the others.

I then proceeded to dry myself off as best as I could, but I was still damp when I fell asleep.

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I jerked awake when something prodded my side and I sat up, stopping my fist right before it hit Shifu's face.

"Master Shifu," I addressed him, trying to erase the surprise on my face as I lowered my fist. "What do you need?"

"Come with me; we need to talk," he instructed, walking away.

Getting off my sleeping mat, I followed him to the very back of the cave as I blinked the remaining sleep from my eyes. I glanced at the entrance to the cave, noticing that the storm was still raging strong. I also noticed that night was well underway; the cave was extremely dark, as was outside.

Suddenly I saw movement out of the corner of my eyes. I turned my head quickly and stopped, taking in every detail that I could. After a moment I figured it was nothing and continued to follow Shifu.

"What do you need to talk to me about?" I asked, slightly confused.

"What happened when you were captured by the Crimson Knights?" he replied.

I stared at him for a moment and then blinked. "They didn't do hardly anything to me, if that's what you're wondering."

Shifu nodded. "So you are unharmed?"

"The only way that they hurt me was when Chóuhèn shot at me with her arrow on the rocks. Other than that, they hardly touched me."

"'Hardly'?" Shifu repeated, arching an eyebrow.

"Chóuhèn kicked me." I shrugged. "Though not very hard."

Thunder crashed. I looked back at the entrance to the cave and saw that the rain was falling harder.

I sighed. "I don't know if I'll be able to get back to sleep with this storm as loud as it is."

"You can keep watch with me," the red panda offered.

I looked at him, mildly surprised. "Okay."

I followed him to the entrance of the cave and we stared out at the pouring rain and flashing lightning.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, it seems that Shifu is getting slightly friendlier to Tigress. And wow, that was a pretty intense chapter, huh? <strong>

**I actually had a different idea about the collapsing fortress at first, but it turned out a lot different when I wrote it. Isn't it strange how that can happen? **

**Anyway, I would like to thank my reviewers, **_**FyreDragon5, Mrs. Catherine Potter, OscarMerrinoz96, AnimationGirl, D, Tigressfan12, **_**and **_**RedHeadsRock1010 **_**for their great reviews! You people are awesome!** **And speaking of **_**FyreDragon5**_**, I VERY highly encourage you to read her stories; they're amazing!**

**And please leave me a thorough review; tell me what you think will happen and please let me know of any mistakes!**

**Have a great day/night everyone!**

**10/21/13**


	12. Harsh Conditions

_**IMPORTANT NOTE:**_** This story will be slightly revised soon. I'm doing it to make sure that my stories achieve their full potential! **_**This chapter has been slightly revised!**_

**Here's chapter twelve! Thanks to all who reviewed! You people rock!**

**And, for all of you who were wondering, Hēisè de dúyè means 'Black Venom'.**

**Here's a fun bit of information: Tigress' thoughts in this chapter about the storm are inspired by my own, especially about the rain.**

**This chapter starts in Tigress' point of view.**

* * *

><p>I stared at the many raindrops as they fell mercilessly; the storm hadn't lessened in the slightest in the past three hours. In fact, it had gotten worse.<p>

The rain thudded against the ground, creating a melodic, almost lulling sound. I knew from experience, however, that the rain was not very comforting to be in; it had actually stung a little with this storm. Nonetheless, it had steadily fallen harder and harder. The flashes of lightning illuminated the rocks and the surrounding terrain. The thunder was louder than I had ever heard it; I flattened my ears against my head in an attempt to muffle the noise. The wind howled and I could see that the few trees in sight were on the verge of being blown over by the buffeting wind.

I glanced over at Master Shifu, who sat less than two feet away from me. He too had his ears angled backward and I didn't envy him for his ultra-sensitive hearing his large ears gave him.

I turned my gaze back to the rain and focused on one droplet as soon as it came into view. It took less than a second for it to splatter on the ground. I continued this until I grew bored of it and then turned to look at my friends, who were all still sound asleep. They looked so peaceful… and yet Monkey flinched almost every time thunder sounded. I smiled slightly when I realized that he was trying and failing to look like he was asleep. But it was all too obvious he was awake by his breathing and the fact that he jerked whenever the thunder crashed.

"Master, we're not the only ones awake," I told him quietly. Then, I raised my voice a bit so that Monkey would hear me. "I know you're awake, Monkey. You can sit with us if you want."

Monkey opened his eyes. "Was it that obvious?"

I nodded and he got out from under a couple blankets and, being careful so that he didn't wake the others, walked over to where Shifu and I were sitting. He settled down to the right of me; Shifu was to my left.

"So, what are you doing?" Monkey asked, glancing at Shifu and me in turn.

"Keeping a look out," I answered simply. "Although I doubt that those foxes would attack us in this kind of weather. If they had any senses at all they would stay indoors." I looked over at him. "You can try to go back to sleep if you want."

Monkey shook his head. "I don't think I could sleep with all this noise."

I nodded in understanding and got in a more comfortable position, staring out into the night.

Time passed in silence between us; the only sounds were of the storm. I wasn't sure how much time went by before I saw some light start to come over the mountains; the sun was rising. Of course, we couldn't see the sun because of the black clouds that covered the sky, stretching out as far as the eye could see.

I sighed. "Mast Shifu, this storm doesn't look like it's going to let up anytime soon. What do you suggest we do?"

He hesitated. "I suppose the only thing we can do is wait it out."

I gazed out at the storm: the wind, the rain, the lightning. From the look of the ominous dark-as-night clouds above us, it seemed like it was going to last for a long time.

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"Master Shifu, we have a big problem."

I looked over to where Po was standing. He was looking out at the still-raging storm, but his expression held concern and fear. Walking over to him, I stopped when I felt cold water touch my feet.

Looking down, my eyes widened in mild surprise to see that the water was starting to enter the cave; my eyes widened further upon looking outside. The rain was no longer thudding against the ground; it was now causing millions of tiny ripples as it made contact with the water that was flooding most of the area. Even worse was the fact that the flood had started to enter the cave.

"We have to get to higher ground," I thought aloud.

"What?" Po exclaimed, looking at me incredulously. "Do you really want to go out in _that?" _He pointed out at the raging storm.

"No." I shook my head. "But do you want to just sit here while the cave floods?" I gestured at a small dip at the entrance of the cave that the rainwater was slowly filling. "The water will fill that up and the rest of the cave is lower than the ground outside. Water will fill in here faster than out there. Not only that, but if there were a flash flood, we would be trapped in here," I reasoned.

"Well, yeah…" Po's voice drifted off. "Master Shifu, what do you think we should do?"

"We may wait to see if the storm calms for a little while, but we can't wait long. Tigress is right; the longer we wait, the more we are risking," the red panda answered.

Po took a deep breath. "So, how long should we wait? Ten minutes? Five?"

"We should wait for a few minutes and if the rain hasn't calmed or gotten worse, then we should travel to find higher ground," Shifu elaborated.

"How dangerous is this going to be?"

"Judging by the fact that there could be a flash flood any second, very dangerous," I replied almost nonchalantly. "And there's always the smallest chance of being struck by lightning."

Po groaned.

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I squinted, trying to see through all the rain. The wind wasn't helping in the slightest; it just made me feel like I was freezing. My fur was plastered to my body and we had only been outside for about a minute.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Po called over the din of the storm.

"Well it's better than waiting to be forced out of the cave by the flood!" I shouted back.

Suddenly a strange noise sounded and I looked up to see a horrific sight.

"Run!" I yelled to my friends. "Try to climb!"

"Why—" Po stopped, his eyes widening when he saw what was fast approaching.

I quickly shoved him on a higher rock ledge and followed the others up, but I feared I was too late; the rushing water of the flash flood caught on my tail and leg, threatening to drag me with it. Thankfully, the others helped me onto the ledge and we stood together, watching as the swift water continued whooshing past, most of the water flowing into the cave we had spent the night in.

I turned to Po, a serious look on my face. "Now think of what would've happened if we stayed in the cave. Thanks, by the way."

"You're thanking me?" Po looked surprised. "I should be thanking you! You just saved my life!"

"I'm just doing what I know is right." I shrugged. I then sent him a small smile. "And saving you isn't hard to do."

Abruptly I felt frigid water hit my paws. Looking down, I saw that the water was steadily rising, no doubt a cause of the flash flood and excessive rain.

"This isn't over," I reminded everyone, turning my gaze to look above us. "We still have to get to higher ground. The water is rising too fast."

The others nodded in agreement.

Looking for footholds on the rock, we started making our way to the next ledge, which was several feet above us. At least, it looked like a ledge.

I went last, watching the water as I waited for my turn. The rushing water was already up to my knees, and I fought to stay upright as the strong current tried to sweep me off of my paws. Then, when it was my turn to climb, I lifted my arms and grabbed the first two footholds.

I climbed out of the water and easily enough scaled the small, rough cliff. Turning back to look down at the water, I saw that another surge had risen the water.

"Hey, look!" Po exclaimed happily, pointing.

Following his gaze, I saw what I hadn't expected; blue sky. The black clouds ended not far from us, and sparse white clouds and blue sky were taking its place. I gave a sigh of relief.

"Now we just have to make it through the rest of the storm alive," I muttered.

"How much longer do you think the storm will last?" Po asked, obviously excited.

I shrugged. "Could be another hour; could be two."

"What do you animals think you're doing on my territory?"

We all whirled around to face the speaker. We all took a hasty step back, startled by the enormous animal.

It was standing on its hind legs, its lips drawn back in an angry snarl. Its bulk made it clear that the animal was very strong; it was bigger than even Po. Its black claws were long and they gleamed slightly in the dull light. Its brown, shaggy fur was long and its dark eyes were narrowed aggressively. "Get out of my sight!" it roared, its voice making it clear that it was male. And I also knew what animal it was.

The brown bear gave another loud, threatening roar and took a step toward us, his large form looming dangerously over us.

"Please don't kill us! We can't go back down there!" Po pleaded, his fear so strong I could easily sense it.

"I told you once, don't make me force you!" His voice was deep and had a threatening undertone to it.

"But—"

"GET OUT!" The bear lunged forward and I instantly took action.

Shoving Po out of the way of the bear's huge jaws, I ducked and kicked, landing a solid hit to the side of his head. He reeled back with a roar of pain.

"If it's a fight you want, _cat,_ it's a fight you'll get!" the bear spat, jumping at me.

Ignoring the insult, I quickly rolled to the right and barreled into his side, sending both of us to the ground. I had control, however, and flipping myself over, springing away from the bear as he landed heavily on the rock. Snarling, he got back on all fours and glared at me. I could tell he was watching my every movement, trying to determine when I would attack, but I held my ground, getting into a fighting stance and readying myself for his next assault.

"Tigress, let us h—"

I cut Viper off. "Everything is under control. Thanks, but I don't need help," I answered stiffly, concentrating on the battle at hand.

The bear roared and lunged and I responded by pouncing under him, twisting to kick him. He caught on though and blocked my foot. Landing heavily, he turned, eyes blazing furiously. Instead of waiting for his next attack, I jumped at him and laid a blow to his shoulder. He swung his huge paw at my head and I barely dodged his claws by ducking. Taking advantage of his swing I swept his other paw off the ground, causing him to fall forward. He tried to catch himself, but wasn't fast enough and face-planted on the hard stone. He let out a grunt of pain, but quickly got back up.

"Just give it up already!" Po called from several feet away. "You can't win against Tigress!"

The bear shot him a look that could kill and I immediately darted forward, landing a strong kick to his side. He fell over; he obviously didn't expect me to attack him at that moment. He got back on all fours before rearing up on his hind legs.

"I will never give up!" he roared, baring his teeth.

"We'll see about that," I retorted sharply, glaring at him.

I did what I knew he wanted me to do; I charged at him. He swung his large claws at me, but I already anticipated that action and jumped, landing right on his broad shoulders. Enraged, the brown bear thrashed, attempting to hit me off of him, but I crouched down and slid down his back, keeping my claws sheathed. When I was around the middle of his back, I kicked off, sending both of us forcefully away from each other. This time he caught himself and turned back around to face me. I returned his glare with just as much intensity.

It was very obvious that the ferocious bear was getting agitated and I knew from experience that he would eventually lose control of his temper.

I focused solely on evading his various attacks in an attempt to get him to lose control and it worked. With a roar of absolute rage, he charged at me, jaws snapping. I easily dodged his clumsy, yet powerful assault and kicked the bottom of his muzzle, making his head snap back. He reeled backward, shaking his head as if to clear the pain away. He glowered at me for a few seconds, before relaxing his stance slightly.

"I am no fool. I can see that you are a skilled warrior," he said. "I can also see very clearly that I cannot win this fight; you have hit me many times and yet I haven't even been able to lay a single scratch. You and your friends may stay here, but don't stay long." And with that, he lumbered away, limping slightly because I had hit his shoulder.

I slowly eased into a casual stance and looked at my friends and master.

"You did it!" Po cheered, throwing his fisted hands in the air triumphantly. "Whoo hoo! He really felt the thunder!"

I smiled, relieved that the battle was over. I had never fought a bear before, except, of course, Po, but especially not a brown bear. Just the enormity of the animal was intimidating, let alone the long, slender claws of the beast.

Thunder abruptly sounded, reminding us instantly of the storm. I realized suddenly that the rain had slowed to a drizzle; I must have been too concentrated on the fight to notice before. Looking up, I saw that the end of the storm was nigh; most of the sky was now blue instead of being covered by the black clouds.

"Looks like we made it through the storm," I stated, grateful that we had survived the harsh weather.

"Yeah!" Po shouted enthusiastically.

"So… what should we do now?" Crane inquired. "The storm has washed away the trail of the Crimson Knights."

Shifu nodded. "Do any of you have ideas?"

Silence.

Master Shifu sighed, obviously exasperated. "Then we will just have to keep searching."

"Wait!" Po exclaimed. "What if we ask the bear if he's seen them?"

"Po, that bear doesn't even want us near him," I pointed out. "Why, do you think, would he answer our question?"

"Well… he respects you, right? So, maybe you could ask him."

"What?" I stared at him incredulously.

"Just try it!" Po encouraged.

"Po, it was your idea! You ask him!" I argued.

"Fine! Just come with me? Please?"

I sighed. "Alright, I'll come with you."

"Yes! Alright, let's go!" Po started for the cave that the bear had disappeared into.

"… And this is what I get for humoring him," I muttered, amused. I followed the enthused panda to the cave entrance.

"Uh… hello? Bear?" Po called tentatively. "Can I, uh, ask you something?"

"No," the bear replied sternly from the shadows. "Now go away."

"No! Bear, we really need to know if you've seen any foxes around here!" Po quarreled. "Please tell us! Unless you want Tigress to beat you up again!"

The brown bear hesitated. "Yes, I did see a large group of foxes. They and a Komodo dragon passed by here yesterday. They were heading towards the Píngyuán plains."

"Okay, thank you so much! And now we'll get off your territory." Po called over his shoulder as he ran back out of the cave.

I followed him closely and we reached the others quickly.

"He saw the Knights!" Po reported. "He said that they were heading towards… um, the plains."

"The Píngyuán plains," I elaborated. "They passed by here yesterday, so they're probably already there."

Shifu shook his head. "The Píngyuán plains are many miles away from here. It takes several hours to reach there and I believe that the storm would slow them in the least. We should head out immediately; the foxes are most assuredly almost there by now."

"So we're gonna have to walk more?" Po whined.

"More like run," Shifu replied, smiling at the panda's reaction.

"Oh great." Po groaned. "Can't we eat lunch first?"

"Sure," I responded. "But you told the bear that we would leave soon. So, I suggest that we don't make a liar out of you and find another place to eat."

"… Yeah, you're probably right."

"Come on, then. Let's start looking for sheltered ground, or at least a place that isn't flooded," I said, glancing around at the area surrounding us.

The rock stretched out for a few yards, but then a steep drop-off that plummeted about twenty feet on almost all sides made it almost impossible to get anywhere easily. The only way, as far as I could see, was down the way we had come.

"Over here." I started toward the edge.

"We're going back down?" Po questioned, giving me a quizzical look.

"Do you see any other way?" I pointed out. "Just be careful. I'll go first and catch anyone that falls."

And with that, I began climbing down the cliff.

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><p>… <strong>And there it is! Truthfully, I've wanted to put a bear fight-scene in this story (the Crimson Knights' leader was originally going to be a grizzly bear) and I hadn't found a good opportunity until now.<strong>

**Anyway, I would love to thank my reviewers, **_**FyreDragon5, AnimationGirl, Tigressfan12, OscarMerrinoz96, **_**and **_**D.**_** You people rock! Hurray for you!**

**Please, **_**please **_**leave a review! I want to know what you guys and gals think of my story! ^-^ Thanks to those who review in advance!**

**Have a great day/night everyone!**

**10/24/13**


	13. A New Friend

_**IMPORTANT NOTE:**_** This story will be slightly revised soon. I'm doing it to make sure that my stories achieve their full potential! **_**This chapter has been slightly revised!**_

**Here's chapter thirteen! Heheheh, this is going to be good. *grins mischievously***

**This chapter starts in Tigress' point of view.**

* * *

><p>I carefully lowered myself down the cliff, watching my paws carefully. Finally, I reached the bottom, but I had to keep hold on the closest foothold in the rock in order to not get pulled off of my feet.<p>

The water was frigid and it was almost up to my waist. Not only that, but it was very difficult to keep my footing in the strong, swift current.

"Hey Tigress!" Po called. "Can we come down now?"

It didn't take long to decide. "No!" I yelled back. "I'm coming back up. Stay there!"

Sighing quietly, I started lifting myself back out of the cold water, but the stone was too slippery and I grunted with effort as I tried again to get a grip on the rough surface.

_Oh great, _I thought sarcastically. _This is just about as easy as trying to keep Po away from food._

I smiled slightly at the thought before shaking my head to clear it. I needed to focus.

Gritting my teeth, I dug my back claws into the mud I was standing on and crouched. Then, I sprung out of the water and somehow managed to grab hold of a tiny cleft in the rock. Unsheathing my claws by instinct, I started pulling my legs and tail from the fast water, eyes narrowed in determination. I quickly, yet carefully scaled the cliff, eventually reaching the top.

"The water's still too high and too fast," I reported as I stood, trying not to shiver. "We can't go back down there yet."

Po gave an exasperated sigh and started looking around. "What now then?"

"We find another solution to our problem," I answered simply.

"I might have one!"

We all jumped slightly at the unexpected voice and turned to see a cougar crouched on a ledge high above our heads and several yards away. By its voice, we could tell that it was a girl. And a young one at that.

"Uh… hi," Po said, obviously surprised and not sure what to say. "Who are you?"

The cougar grinned childishly. "I'm Zhēn! Who are all of you?" She tipped her head slightly to the left.

Po, not one to be rude in the slightest, replied for all of us. "I'm Po and this is Tigress, Monkey, Mantis, Crane, Viper and Master Shifu." He pointed at each of us as he said our names.

Zhēn smiled and jumped down, landing with a small grunt on the rock a couple yards in front of us. She stood and walked toward us until she was a few feet away. I could see now that she wasn't much taller that my waist.

"What are you guys doing around here? You don't look like you live in these mountains," she said.

"We don't," I responded bluntly. "We're just traveling through here."

"Are you lost? You've been standing here for a while."

"How long have you been there?" Po asked, his voice incredulous.

She shrugged. "Long enough to see you fight off Niko."

"Niko?" Mantis repeated.

"The bear," Zhēn clarified. "He's really territorial, as you probably noticed. And grumpy. He only lets me live around here 'cause I'm so little." She frowned. "He calls me names a lot, though." Then she turned toward me, grinning widely again. "That was so cool how you fought Niko! I want to fight like you someday!"

I couldn't resist smiling at her, although I wasn't sure what to say. No one, except Po, of course, had ever said something like that to me. Deciding that encouraging her would be the best thing to do, I knelt down so that I was eye-level with her. "You _can _fight like me someday. You just have to be determined and willing."

Her light-blue eyes widened in excitement. "You really think so?"

I nodded, smiling wider. "I know you can do it."

"I know how to fight a little," Zhēn admitted proudly.

"Good!" I praised. "That's a great start to becoming a warrior."

"Uh, not to be rude or anything, but don't we have to go soon?" Po asked somewhat timidly, although he was smiling widely.

I stood and nodded.

"Where are you guys going?" Zhēn inquired, glancing at Po.

"We're traveling to the Píngyuán plains," Po answered.

"Why?" She tipped her head slightly to the side.

"Because, um, because…" Po tried to come up with an excuse.

Zhēn smiled sheepishly. "Are you following the foxes? I heard you talking about them with Niko."

I gave a slight nod to Po, silently signaling that it was okay for him to answer.

"Um… yeah. Did you happen to see the foxes pass by here?"

She nodded. "I can show you where they went." She then gave Po a quizzical look. "You don't look like much of a climber though. The path that the foxes took shouldn't be too hard, but there's a bit of rock climbing. Can you handle that?"

"Uh…"

"Of course you can, Po." I smirked at him before turning back to face the cougar. "Lead the way. When we reach the plains, we'll have to go on our own, just so you know."

"Okay! Come on, follow me!" She took off toward the ledge she had been perched on a little while ago.

Po gave me an irritated look before running after the excited cat. I smiled to myself and followed, the others right behind me.

"I hope you guys can jump high!" Zhēn called to us, before stopping and crouching low.

I followed her gaze to a ledge a little over a yard above our heads. It was hard to see, as it was camouflaged by foliage and its dark color. Zhēn sprang and easily reached the ledge. She disappeared from sight for a moment before her head abruptly appeared as she looked down at us, a playful grin on her face.

"Come on, Po!" she coaxed. "You can do it!"

Looking over at Po, I noticed the nervous look on his face. I could tell that he doubted himself. I rolled my eyes and walked over to him.

"Monkey, stay down here and help Po," I commanded as I launched myself up and onto the ledge almost effortlessly. "I'll be up here and pull him up."

I turned around and crouched on the ledge, reaching down to grab Po's wrists. With a loud grunt of effort, Monkey lifted Po high enough for me to grasp his hands and I hauled him up.

"Thanks," he said as he straightened up.

I nodded in response, smiling slightly.

"Come on, slowpokes! This way!" Zhēn told us when everyone was on the small ledge, making it quite cramped.

We then continued following the young cougar and I hoped silently that we would catch up to the Crimson Knights within the next day.

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"So you guys are all warriors?" Zhēn asked us as we walked down a narrow path between two enormous precipices.

The chasm was very large, and the walls were so steep that it would be impossible to climb. Not only that, but trees and bushes almost covered the top; some of the rock we were walking on was actually dry. I gave a slight, swift shake of my head in annoyance as a drop of water slipped off of a leaf above and splashed on my nose.

"Yup!" Po answered Zhēn's question. "And Master Shifu taught us everything we know."

She turned her head to look at Shifu with wide, excited eyes. "You taught them _everything?"_

Shifu gave a small chuckle. "Not _everything, _but yes. I taught them a lot."

"What didn't you teach them?"

"There are a few moves we've made up!" Po replied happily. "Like the 'Double-Death Strike' and the 'Weapon of Death'!"

Zhēn smirked. "You like putting the word 'death' in those names, don't you?" she commented with a laugh.

"Well… maybe a little." Po joined in with her laughter. "It just makes it sound cooler, don't you think?"

She shrugged. "Sure it does."

We walked in silence for a few minutes before Zhēn broke it.

"So, why are you guys going after the foxes?" she inquired, tilting her head slightly.

"Um…" Po failed to come up with an excuse.

I sighed, deciding that it was best to tell her the truth. "The foxes are evil, and we need to bring them to justice," I answered the young cougar.

Her eyes went wide. "Wow, really?"

I nodded.

"Can I help you?" she asked, an eager look spreading across her face.

"I'm sorry, but I don't think that would be a good idea," I responded, giving her a sympathetic look. "The foxes are really dangerous."

"But you could teach me how to fight! I could help a lot!"

I shook my head sadly. "Sorry, but you can't come with us. It's just too dangerous right now."

She looked crestfallen for a moment before brightening slightly. "Then I'll just help as much as I can for now."

I sent her a smile, admiring her attitude; even when she was turned down, she didn't give up.

"And you _are_ helping us," I told her, regaining her attention. "You're helping us by showing us where the foxes went and we're very grateful for that."

She grinned, happy once again.

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We had been traveling for several hours. We stopped right where the rock ended and the grassy plain began.

"There are the Píngyuán plains!" Zhēn announced, pointing off into the distance. "And beyond it should be the mountain Sǐzhě."

"How do you know so much?" Po asked, obviously impressed by the little cougar's knowledge.

She simply shrugged and I noticed with curiosity that her expression was slightly guarded. "My parents told me about the territory all around here. I've never actually been to the Sǐzhě, or even gone into these plains." She shuddered. "Are you guys going to go into the Sǐzhě?"

"We might have to, if that's where the foxes are going," I answered. I looked down at her. "Why?"

"Those mountains are supposedly haunted." She shivered, despite the warm temperature. "Don't you know what Sǐzhě means?"

We all shook our heads.

For the first time a hint of fear crept into her voice. "The mountain is called Sǐzhě because everyone who's gone in it has never come back out. Sǐzhě means 'Of the Dead'."

"Are there ghosts?" Po asked fearfully.

I rolled my eyes at him in slight annoyance. "Ghosts aren't real, Po."

"How do you know that?! They could be _anywhere!"_

"One of the reasons I know ghosts don't exist is because Mantis told you that ghosts are real. Plus no one's ever actually seen a ghost."

"Yeah, but that's because ghosts are _invisible! _Of course no one's seen any of them!" Po was clearly to the point of freaking out, as his eyes were darting around as if he knew that something dangerous was constantly out of sight, yet always there.

I sighed. "Fine, believe Mantis and his ghost stories. But we have to get going. Come on." I turned toward Zhēn. "Thank you for leading us here. Hopefully we'll see each other again, Zhēn."

"I hope so!" she agreed. "You guys are awesome!"

I smiled. "Bye, Zhēn. It was great getting to know you."

"Yeah!"

We finished exchanging goodbyes and watched as Zhēn bounded away on all fours, heading back the way we had come. I watched her until she was completely out of sight before turning to look at my friends, who were all grinning at me.

"What?" I questioned, giving them a confused look.

"You're just cute around little kids," Po answered.

My eyes narrowed immediately and Po took a step back as soon as he had realized what he'd said.

"Uh, I mean—"

"Oh, I know what you mean." I cut him off, advancing on him as he took a few more steps backward.

I clenched my hands into fists and gave Po a look that could kill. Mantis wasn't the only one that didn't enjoy being called 'cute'.

"Guys…" Viper drifted off, realizing that it was useless.

"Fighting amongst yourselves? Isn't that a bit of a… weakness?"

We all froze before turning toward the speaker.

Hēisè De Dúyè smirked at us, Chóuhèn standing next to her. A lot more foxes stood behind them, some wielding bows and others holding swords or hammers. They stood at the entrance to a cave a few yards above our heads on a small ledge.

We all got into fighting stances, ready to fight the Knights again.

"Relax. We won't attack you," Hēisè De Dúyè announced.

I shared a confused glance with Viper.

"But if you really want to attack us, then you may follow us into the Sǐzhě," Hēisè De Dúyè continued. "I promise that you won't come back out. Ever. So, if you're _really _dedicated to taking us down, then follow at your own risk." She grinned, sending chills up and down my spine. "But we'll leave a trail for you to follow. After all, we want to be a few hours ahead of you."

I opened my mouth to retort, but I didn't even get the chance before five foxes threw strange ball-things down into the chasm. Upon making contact with the hard rock, the balls burst, sending a strange gray gas into the air. The instant I tried to breath, my vision turned foggy and I suddenly felt weak, along with feeling the strong urge to sleep. Fighting against the abnormal feeling, I fell to my hands and knees, coughing.

But no matter how hard I tried to stay awake, I couldn't win; everything went black within a matter of moments.

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The first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was the cold rock I was laying on. With a groan I sat up, feeling weak. My friends and master were still unconscious or asleep; they were sprawled on the ground.

I shook my head in an attempt to clear it of the sleepiness I felt and I began to remember what had happened. With a jerk, I stood and looked around cautiously, searching for any sign of the foxes and lizard. But nothing was there, only tons of muddy paw-prints leading into the plains.

"Are you okay?"

I jumped slightly and turned toward the voice, before relaxing when I saw who it was.

"I'm fine," I answered, giving Zhēn a small reassuring smile. Then, realizing that she had apparently come back to us, I asked, "What are you doing here? Weren't you going back to Niko?"

"I heard the Komodo dragon talking to you and I was worried that she was going to hurt you." She shrugged. "I couldn't help but come back."

I sighed. "How long have we been out?"

"A few hours." She glanced up at the sky and I noticed for the first time that night had fallen; the full moon overhead shed light on the otherwise dark terrain around us.

"Oh great," I muttered sarcastically. "Zhēn, can you help me wake the others? We need to get moving so that we can catch those foxes."

"Sure!" she replied, running over to Monkey.

While she attempted to wake Monkey, I went over to Po and shook his shoulders.

"Wake up, Po."

He didn't move. Sighing, I decided to try a different approach. "Po, Monkey's going to eat the last of his cookies."

"What?! No, Mon—!" Po's eyes snapped open, and he bolted upright. "What the…? Where am I?"

"The Knights threw some sort of sleeping gas bomb at us. We're on the edge of the plains."

"Oh yeah." He relaxed. "So, what were you saying about cookies?"

I rolled my eyes. "That was just to wake you up. Come on, we have to wake the others."

"Okay, okay."

I stood back up and helped him to his feet before going to wake up Viper. When everyone was awake, we sat in a semi-circle.

"What should we do, Master Shifu? I don't want to go in the Sǐzhě," Po whined.

"Calm down, Po," I responded. "It's not really haunted. I'm guessing that the Crimson Knights' base is there and that's why no one ever comes back out of the mountain."

"Yeah, but—"

Shifu interrupted him. "We are defeating them no matter what the cost, panda. Thousands of lives are in danger with the Knights still around and all of China is counting on us to stop them." He gave Po a stern look. "Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, Master Shifu."

"Um… are the Crimson Knights those foxes?" Zhēn timidly inquired.

I sighed inwardly. "Yes. Zhēn, you can't tell anyone about our mission. If word gets to the Knights, then they'll be expecting us."

She nodded her understanding. "I promise I won't tell."

"Good." I sent her a smile.

"You can stay with us until we travel tomorrow," Shifu told the young cougar. "Then you'll have to go back to your home."

"Okay." She brightened. "Thanks for letting me stay with you."

Shifu nodded, giving her a small smile. "We should get some sleep. I will keep the first watch. Tigress, you will have the second."

I nodded, already eager to continue our journey. I hoped that we weren't far from our goal, but I also knew that we were still a long ways away from the mountain.

With my thoughts centered on the journey, I slowly fell asleep.

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><p><strong>And there it is! I hope you enjoyed it! And I wonder why the Knights didn't kill them while they had the chance? Hmmm… Being the writer, I know, but I can't tell you until the time comes! =D<strong>

**So, what do you guys and gals think about Zhēn? Do you think our favorite characters can trust her? Or do you think she can't be trusted? Please leave a review telling me what you think of this chapter! I really want to know!**

**Now, to thank my reviewers! Here we go! I would like to thank **_**FyreDragon5, D, OscarMerrinoz96, AnimationGirl, **_**and**_** Tigressfan12! **_**You people are most of the reason why this story is still going!**

**Have a great day/night, everyone!**

**10/28/13**


	14. Trust

**Well, here's chapter fourteen!**

_**Major **_**special thanks go to **_**RevDragon, **_**for his amazing review! Seriously, I'm **_**really **_**impressed by the length and detail! **_**RevDragon, **_**your review is definitely the best I've ever gotten! I could really see in it how much you enjoy my story, and you also made it clear what you thought was good in this story. I am **_**extremely **_**grateful to you! Honestly, **_**thank you!**_** And it wasn't the length of the review that impressed me. Mainly, it was the time you were willing to take to create a review that said a lot more than just "Good chapter, can't wait for next one." Seriously, thanks tons!**

**Anonymous Review Replies**

_**countryman – **_**Thanks tons brother! I love you lots! =D**

_**Rae600 – **_**Thanks sis! LYLAS too!**

_**D – **_**Wow, you're a great thinker! And you just might be on to something there! ;D Thanks for your review and support!**

_**shreveauburn123 – **_**I don't have much against the pairing, but are you saying that I'm stupid because I don't support Tigress being in love with Po? Because I don't consider myself stupid. And I could argue for hours about this, but here's how I understand it; Tigress hugged Po because she understood and sympathized with him; she doesn't know what happened to her family, and the hug she gave him was to comfort him. And same with the scene on the boat; she was just trying to comfort him. I'm not trying to pick a fight with you, but this is my honest opinion, and you will not see anything even **_**close **_**to romance between Tigress and Po in this story. I strongly disagree with Tigress being paired with Po, and that won't change. I respect the fact that you support the pairing so I won't mock you or tease you, and I expect that people respect me for my choice to **_**not**_** support Ti/Po. I'm sorry, but this is my honest opinion, and I don't support that pairing in the slightest.**

**Sorry about that. I just get angry when people say I'm stupid because I don't support a certain pairing, let alone when people don't respect me for my decisions. *sighs in exasperation* Again, sorry.**

**And don't worry about the length of this chapter being shortened by this long author's note thing. I'll make sure that it's at least as long as every other chapter!**

**Anyway, this chapter starts in Tigress' POV.**

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><p>I sighed quietly as I watched the plains, searching for any movement. I hadn't seen anything yet, and I had already been on watch for over two hours.<p>

I removed my gaze from the miles of grass to look over at Zhēn, wondering if she could be trusted. She seemed like an honest girl, but by instinct I was wary about her. I had learned my lesson about trust years ago.

I shook the memory away before it could take over; if I lost focus, we could be attacked by the Knights. I returned to watching the plains, letting my thoughts wash over me.

I thought about how Zhēn had acted the night before, how tentative she had been when she asked about the Knights. I narrowed my eyes slightly. She had been a lot more timid than usual; even though I hadn't known her for even a day, I could tell that something was up. _Maybe it's because of how Master Shifu was talking to Po, _I thought. _But still…_

I heard a small rustling noise, and I immediately turned to see what had made the sound. I didn't relax when I saw that Zhēn was twisting and turning, her face in an expression of pain. She was muttering something that I couldn't understand.

I crept over to her, being careful not to wake any of the others up.

"Zhēn, wake up," I whispered, placing my paw on her shoulder and gently shaking her.

She jerked and bolted straight up, staring at me with wide, frightened eyes. "T-Tigress?" she stammered, before abruptly jumping up and clinging to me.

Completely shocked by her action, I didn't react for a few seconds. Then, I wrapped my arms around her small form in an attempt to comfort the distressed cougar. She had her arms around my neck, but it wasn't uncomfortable. I could hear her sobbing, and I was at a loss for what to do for several seconds.

"It's okay, Zhēn. You're okay," I said, desperately trying to calm her down. "Was it a nightmare?"

She pulled away from me slightly, nodding.

"Do you want to talk about it?" I asked, keeping my voice gentle.

She hesitated. "It's kind of a s-secret… but I know that I can trust you. Just promise t-that you won't tell anyone?"

"I promise," I replied.

Zhēn looked down, not making eye contact. "I want to help you fight the f-foxes for a personal reason… The Crimson Knights is what they're called, right?"

I nodded. She looked up at me, and I could see the fear and vulnerability in her eyes.

"Well… a couple months ago, they attacked me b-because I was 'in their way'. But then my parents came and saved me." Tears started streaming down her cheeks. "The Komodo dragon k-killed my mom and dad."

She buried her head in my fur, and I gently stroked her back. I admired how strong she was, and I hugged her to try and comfort her. Her short story touched me, even though it was so simple.

"You're really strong, Zhēn. I admire you for that. I promise that I won't tell anyone your secret."

We just sat there, and after several minutes, Zhēn's tears finally slowed to a stop. She pulled back so that she could look at me, and she gave me a small smile.

"Thanks for talking to me, Tigress," she said.

I returned her smile. "I'm glad that I could help, and thanks for confiding in me."

She nodded, and she hugged me. I returned it, grateful that I was able to comfort Zhēn. The only previous experience I'd had with comforting someone was with Po, when he thought that no one understood him.

"The sunrise is so pretty," Zhēn stated, bringing me out of my thoughts.

Looking up, I saw that the sun was rising, shedding a pinkish-orange light over the terrain. I nodded in response to the small cougar's statement, smiling.

"The others will be awake soon," I told her.

"Can you act like nothing happened last night?" Zhēn asked.

"Of course," I answered. "And I'll make sure that they don't find out."

She grinned. "Thanks."

"No problem."

Abruptly Po yawned and sat up, rubbing his eyes sleepily. "Morning, Tigress. Morning, Zhēn."

"Good morning!" the young cougar replied cheerily, getting off of my lap and standing. I stood by her.

Soon the others were up, and we all ate breakfast quickly.

"So… can I come with you guys?" Zhēn inquired. "Please?"

Master Shifu sighed. "It's too dangerous, and I don't know how experienced you are with fighting."

"But I _can _fight! My parents taught me a little! Please let me help you!" she pleaded, her voice desperate.

Shifu faltered, obviously not expecting her reaction to his words. "I, uh…"

"She can follow us into the plains at least, right Master Shifu?" Po suggested.

I silently breathed a sigh of relief, grateful that Po was supporting letting Zhēn come with us.

"You guys really _are _going into the Sǐzhě?" the little cougar asked, head tilted in curiosity.

"Yes," Shifu replied. "And I expect that you will not follow us in there?"

Zhēn's eyes widened. "No way am I going into those mountains!"

Shifu nodded his approval. "Good. We must hurry and follow the Knights."

We nodded our agreement.

"Let's go!" Po exclaimed, pumping his fist in the air enthusiastically.

"Yeah!" Zhēn's voice joined his.

And with that, we started into the Píngyuán plains.

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_The wind whispered through the trees as if spreading a threat to all those who felt the breeze. The light rain was only the beginning of what would become a continuous downpour. The dark clouds promised a day full of thunder and lightning. The ominous black of the sky foretold of a seemingly never-ending night. The lack of any light whatsoever made it clear that night was well underway. The black clouds covered the moon like a dark shadow over a white light, covering it so that hardly any light was shed on the ground below._

_I felt the cold water of the river rush through my fur, soaking me to the bone. I suppressed a shiver as the frigid liquid caused me to go completely numb. Only my nose, eyes and ears were above the river water, the darkness of the night making it nearly impossible to see me except for the glowing of my amber eyes._

_But I knew very well that I couldn't come out of the water yet. Danger was still lurking, and if I emerged from the water, I would blow my cover. I also knew that lives were in danger, animals that I had never even known before in my life. And yet, I was more than willing to risk my life for these people, as were my friends and master. They had proven that many times over._

"_Are you sure that we should wait?" A male, gruff voice reached my ears._

"_Of course," replied another male voice, this one slightly higher in pitch. Authority coated his voice. "Our real prey will come soon enough, I'm sure of it. Now be quiet."_

_I perked my ears up as I heard footsteps coming toward the river._

"_I still don't get why you don't let us drink from canteens or something," the first voice stated. "I'm going to get a drink from the river."_

Perfect, _I thought silently._

_I carefully swam to the bank, keeping myself hidden within the reeds. I could see the paws of the approaching wolf as he made his way to the side of the river. As he lowered onto all fours and bent his head to lap from the river, I took advantage of his current distraction and swiftly glided through the water, grabbing the wolf's head and pulling it forcefully underwater._

_The wolf spluttered as I held his head underwater. I quickly hit his head with a good-sized rock, knocking him out instantly. I then hurriedly pushed him back out of the water and dragged myself from the water, my fur dripping quietly. I set the unconscious wolf on the ground behind a tree, and hit his chest hard enough to make him cough up water. While he started to wake up, I swiftly knocked lightly on the tree I was behind, sending vibrations up the trunk to Monkey, who was waiting for my signal._

_I covered the wolf's mouth and glanced up into the tree, watching Monkey's golden fur as he jumped from tree to tree and made his way toward Mantis, who would give another signal._

_I turned my attention back to the gray wolf, which was starting to open his eyes. When he saw that I was holding him captive, he immediately started thrashing, obviously trying to hurt me in an attempt at escaping._

"_Stop it," I hissed, my voice threatening, "or I'll do much more than knock you out."_

_Seeing my unsheathed claws, he instantly calmed down, although his eyes were wide with disbelief, wonderment, and panic._

_He mumbled something under my paw, but I didn't fall for the trick. I knew that, if I moved my paw even slightly, he would give his boss a signal, like a howl or some other noise._

_I narrowed my eyes and shook my head, placing my unoccupied hand on his throat and making it clear that the penalty for making sounds or trying to escape would be death._

"_Narro?" the voice I had heard earlier called. "Narro, what are you doing?"_

_I purposefully stepped on a twig, gaining the second wolf's attention._

"_Who's there? Narro, are you playing games with me? You should know very well that this is _not _the time for games, you idiot." His voice held a threatening undertone._

_I flicked my tail over the ground, rustling a bush. I then waited patiently for the wolf to find me. When his head appeared as he walked through the dense trees, I made another noise by snapping a second thin stick. The black wolf's eyes widened upon seeing me holding his comrade hostage._

"_Now, what do we have here?" he said, his expression now guarded._

"_If you want your 'friend' alive, call your troops away from the town," I growled, eyes narrowed dangerously._

_He chuckled darkly. "And what makes you think that I would abide to your wishes, cat?"_

_I saw the panic flash in Narro's eyes from my peripheral vision. He was obviously terrified of death, and I felt slightly sorry for him. _But it was his choice to commit crimes, _I reminded myself._

_I didn't break eye contact with the second wolf. "Why do you think?"_

"_Because you may believe that I care for my men?" He gave a bitter laugh. "You're a fool to believe such a thing."_

_I shook my head. "I never said that."_

"_Then tell my why you think that I would obey you."_

_I couldn't help but smirk. "Right now, your troops are the ones in danger. I'm not the only one that came here to stop you."_

_His eyes dilated with realization, before he regained his composure. "You're wrong. My men are much stronger than anyone you would bring here. Unless you somehow command an army?"_

"_No, but you underestimate me and my comrades. We're much stealthier and stronger than you think."_

_Abruptly the din of battle erupted, and the wolf flinched and turned to run away._

"_Hold it!" I roared, shoving the hostage wolf against the tree hard enough to knock him unconscious. I then charged after the black wolf._

_I tackled the canine from behind and pinned him to the ground. He was prepared, however, and I felt a sharp pain in my shoulder as a throwing knife pierced through it, getting lodged in my skin._

"_You're going to regret that!" I shouted at him, rage starting to fill me as the pain from the wound flowed through me._

_And then suddenly a loud roar sounded, and everything flashed white._

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The white turned to black, before I abruptly woke up. I knew that the roaring noise wasn't in the dream; it was real.

I sat up and looked around frantically, searching for anything that could have emitted such a sound, but all I could see was the plain and the distant mountains.

Zhēn and my friends were nearly in the exact same position as when I had fallen asleep. My master, who had been keeping watch, was nowhere in sight.

Worry pricking my fur, I stood and carefully made my way to where Master Shifu had been standing guard, but there weren't even any footprints indicating that Shifu had once stood there. Confused, I lifted my head and looked around once more.

And I immediately spotted the source of the roar.

"You!" I growled, loud enough to wake at least some of the others. "What are you doing here?"

An enormous bulk of long, dark brown fur and muscle rose on its hind legs, towering over me. No fear showing in my eyes, I got into a fighting stance.

"Why do you think?" the huge brown bear snarled back.

I gave him a puzzled look. "Why should I know?"

Niko narrowed his eyes. "Because you made a fool out of me! Did you honestly think that I would let a cat like you best me in the end? Well, think again!"

I tensed as he took a couple steps forward, but I didn't back down as he walked towards me until he was only a few feet away. His claws glinted in the moonlight, matching the ferocity in his black eyes. It was obvious that he wanted a fight.

"Tigress?" a sleepy voice called.

"Crane, wake up the others, but don't attack Niko," I commanded the avian, my voice holding authority.

"Right away." I could tell by the sudden alertness in his voice that he was completely awake.

Turning my attention back to the angry bear, I glared up at his face, making eye contact.

"Are you challenging me?" he roared, baring his sharp teeth.

I purposely kept my voice calm. "I could ask you the same thing. What exactly do you want, Niko?"

His eyes flared in fury. "You humiliated me in front of a crowd! I will win this fight, but there must be no interference with your friends."

I nodded. "Crane," I called, "make sure that you or the others don't even try to help me. I can handle this, just like last time."

The bear grinned evilly. "Do you promise to fight alone?"

Suspicious of his grin, I nodded.

And immediately heard a cry of shock behind me.

Whirling around, my eyes widened in surprise when I saw foxes surrounding my friends, successfully holding them all hostage. Shifu was among them.

I didn't have time to wonder where he'd come from before Niko barreled into me from behind, sending me to the ground.

"Get up!" he roared. "If you win this fight, we will let your friends and you go. If we win, you will all die."

"We?" I repeated, but the pieces were already falling together. I stood and faced him.

"Of course," Niko sneered. "I am second-in-command of the Crimson Knights. They were about to kill you when you were knocked out by the sleeping gas, but I wanted a rematch with you. I _needed _a rematch with you. So I convinced Hēisè De Dúyè to not kill any of you. The foxes made the trail, while Hēisè De Dúyè and I went the long way. We knew that you would notice my paw prints, and we couldn't have you getting suspicious before it was time to tell."

"Why would Hēisè De Dúyè listen to you?" I growled, interrupting him.

Niko glanced at the Komodo dragon before answering. "She respects me. I respect her. You and your pathetic friends can't win. So why not play with you a bit?"

Snickering was heard from the crowd of foxes. I ignored them.

"Then let's just get this over with," I snarled, getting into a fighting stance. "Expect to lose."

"Oh, but think again." Niko smirked.

The glint of moonlight on metal caught my eye, and I glance briefly around to see four archers; two to the left, two to the right. They all had one arrow nocked on their bows, and all of the arrows were aimed at me.

"Cheater!" I hissed.

"You should know by now," Niko growled, "that evil always cheats!"

Abruptly he reared and came back down, swinging his long, sharp claws in a strong arc down at me. I easily rolled to the side, evading the attack. Niko followed me with his gaze as I landed a few feet to his left. I leapt over him as soon as I came to a stop, flying over his huge bulk and landing smoothly on the other side of him. I kept moving because I knew that one thing was for sure; if I stopped long enough, I would get hit by an arrow.

_Twang! _I quickly ducked under the arrow and started jogging, on all fours, around Niko.

He watched me carefully as I circled him, turning his body in order to be able to have me in his sight constantly. Then, he charged at me, jaws snapping at my head as he ran at me. I swiftly stopped in my tracks and launched myself into the air, hovering for less than a second before coming back down. Niko halted his charge and waited for me to land, but, to his great surprise, I landed on his shoulders. The force of the fall caused him to stumble, and I kicked off him to unbalance him even more. It worked, and he fell over with a grunt of anger.

"You can't win!" he yelled as he quickly got back on all fours.

"The cheater will always lose in the end," I retorted sharply, before dodging two arrows by jumping away.

His eyes flared in anger. "I'll prove to you how wrong you are!"

I didn't reply, instead focusing on escaping his next attack. I rolled to the left as his claws raked the ground where I had been less than a second ago, leaving four deep gashes in the dirt. I swiftly sprinted around him and barged into his side, sending him sprawling onto the ground. He growled, getting up, but I was already on him, and swept his paws out from under him and sent him another kick, this time to his head. He staggered backward, shaking his head as if to clear it. I came back at him, and jumped up high, coming down with a front flip and extending my leg out. Niko roared in immense pain as I landing my foot on his head, similar to the way I had first attacked Shen's weapon.

His head hit the ground hard, and I knew already that he hit it hard enough to knock him out. I walked over to him and kneeled to check, keeping myself in a position where the archers couldn't shoot me without risking hitting Niko. I was completely alert; my ears pricked to pick up even the quietest sound. Especially the sound of arrows being shot.

The second I touched his fur, he jumped up, snapping his jaws at me. I barely managed to keep him from clamping his teeth on my arm.

I sprang away from him, getting out of his reach. Niko roared, fury lighting his eyes, and charged at me. I simply rolled to the side, and he circled back around in another attempt at hitting me. I realized that he had let his short temper get the better of him, and I used his anger to my advantage.

"You lose your control too fast!" I taunted, easily dodging his next attack.

He didn't reply, but reared back on his hind legs and swung his enormous, long claws at me head. I ducked and twisted, sweeping his feet out from under him. He gave a roar as he fell, turning to try and catch himself. He only ended up on his side, however, and he stayed down, attempting to catch his breath. I heard the sound of an arrow being loosed from the bow, and I immediately reacted by turning and catching the arrow. I then faced Niko again, who had risen to his feet.

"I can end this right now," I hissed, revealing the arrow that I held.

The brown bear chuckled darkly, chest still heaving. "And how… do you expect… to do that?"

I instantly jumped on him, bowling him over again, and I pressed the metal arrowhead to his throat.

"Do I have to explain?" I growled. "You've lost again, Niko."

His sudden grin made me shudder. "Oh, but it is you who has lost."

And abruptly pain erupted through my entire body.

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><p><strong>AGH! WHAT HAPPENED? Of course, only I know. *grins evilly* I'm very evil when it comes to cliffhangers, aren't I?<strong>

**Anyway, please review! Any reviews are nice, but ones that actually tell me what the reader likes about the story are most appreciated. =D Oh, and tell me what you think happened to Tigress!**

**I would like to thank most reviewers, **_**RevDragon, D, Rae600, OscarMerrinoz96, AnimationGirl, Tigressfan12, **_**and **_**countryman **_**for their awesome reviews! Seriously, you guys and gals are what keep this story going!**

**Have a great day/night, everyone!**


	15. The Battle That Counts

**Okay, the great big chapter fifteen! In this chapter, we'll find out what happened to Tigress! And, of course, that isn't all…**

**And I'm sorry that this chapter came late. Friday was a big day for me, and it was also **_**very **_**busy. But the next chapter will still be uploaded next Friday (my time)!**

_**Anonymous Review Replies**_

_**D – **_**But maybe she **_**did **_**hear them approaching? And that's a very good point. And what if it **_**was **_**poison? O_O You'll find out soon enough! Oh, and thanks for your review and support!**

_**Tigressfan12 – **_**You'll find out in this chapter! Thanks for your review and support!**

_***WARNING! This chapter has quite a bit of gore and has a creepy nightmare! Don't read if you get queasy at the mention of blood!***_

**This chapter starts in Tigress' point of view.**

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><p>I heard the sound of something running lightly toward me, but it was already too late.<p>

I roared as pain erupted through me, and I barely stopped myself from falling to my knees, the pain was so immense.

With a loud, threatening hiss, I turned and struck at Hēisè De Dúyè, but she was already out of my reach, her claws stained with my blood.

"Tigress!" I heard Po's worried, panicked voice call.

I charged at the Komodo dragon, snarling. I jumped at her, but she dodged, coming back at me with a strike of her own. I evaded it by rolling away, and then I got another idea. Sprinting around Hēisè De Dúyè, I launched myself into the midst of foxes, kicking several over on my way down and freeing Po from the grasp of three canines.

The foxes yipped in panic as Po and I freed the others, but we still only had a few seconds before they recovered from the shock and attacked. I ran on all fours through the mass of foxes, and some were dumb enough to jump at me, causing several collisions. I reached Zhēn and punched one of the two's muzzle, sending him to the ground. The young cougar bit the second fox's hand, making him let go of her with a yelp of pain.

"Okay, Zhēn, now's your chance to show us how good of a fighter you are!" I told her quickly. "Come on! I'll stay by you!"

She looked anxiously up at me, before giving an understanding nod and running at a fox without a weapon. Keeping my promise to stay by her, I moved with her, taking out several foxes along the way; I ducked under a sword and kicked a canine's stomach, then twisted to punch another's hammer from his grasp. I back-flipped over a dog, kicking his head in mid-air and sending him forward and into another one. I landed on a fox's shoulders, forcing him to the ground and kicking off of him and bowling over two more dogs.

I was breathing heavily, not from the fighting, but from the loss of blood. I knew, however, that I couldn't stop fighting. Too many lives were in danger, lives that were all precious to me. I couldn't let them down.

With a loud, enraged battle cry, I seized a fox's wrist and threw him into another canine, knocking them both down. I quickly dodged a sword, and then took possession of it by hitting it out of the dog's grasp and grabbing it. I was not very skilled with swords, so I simply threw it at a fox that was giving Zhēn trouble. The weapon lodged in the back of the unsuspecting canine, and he fell limply forward. The little cougar swiftly got out of the way and tripped another fox.

"Not so fast, Tigress."

I growled at the Komodo dragon, my anger rising. I dully noticed that the foxes around me had stopped attacking me; Hēisè De Dúyè had obviously issued an ordered.

"You don't look so good," the lizard continued, smirking. "You don't look like you can fight much longer."

I narrowed my eyes. "You still underestimate me, Hēisè De Dúyè."

"Oh? Then why do you look like you will fall unconscious at any time?"

"Looks can be deceiving," I snarled.

She nodded in agreement. "So true, Tigress. And yet, you will still lose." Her black eyes hardened. "You will die, and your friends will follow in your footsteps."

I lunged at her, but immediately I was knocked down and pinned to the ground by an enormous, heavy paw. The claws of the bear pressed into my neck.

"Who's losing now?" Niko growled, putting more pressure on my throat and making it harder to breathe.

"You are," I retorted, although it took more effort than normal to speak because of my position.

I abruptly kicked his stomach as hard as I could, launching him off of me and into a few foxes. Immediately I jumped up and, turning back toward Hēisè De Dúyè, lunged at her. Her surprise was evident on her face, but she still managed to stop the bulk of my attack, and my assault resulted in her only getting hit back a few inches. I swiftly ducked under her claws and swept her scaly feet out from under her with a quick twist.

"Stop your attack, or else your little friend here dies."

I halted as Niko's voice reached my ears, and Hēisè De Dúyè did the same, her sinister smile returning to her face. I shot her a warning look and turned around, ears angled at the lizard in case she tried anything. My eyes widened in horror at the sight that greeted me.

Niko was standing over Zhēn, his claws digging into her throat. Her eyes were wide in sheer terror and pain; Niko's claws were stained with blood.

Zhēn's blood.

I stepped toward them, but Niko put more pressure on the young cougar's neck.

"Hold it," he commanded. "Unless you want your little friend to die, you had better surrender. You, _and _your other friends."

A growl rose in my throat, but I held it down. Zhēn was in immense danger, that much was obvious. But I wasn't sure what I could do without at least one of us dying. I cared too much for Zhēn to just let anyone kill her. But if we gave ourselves up, our mission was as good as failed with all of these armed, dangerous foxes surrounding us.

Niko had found my weak point.

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><p>"Stop your attack, or else your little friend here dies."<p>

I defeated the fox I was fighting and turned to see the speaker. I knew already that the voice belonged to Niko, but I also knew that the bear wasn't talking to me.

I could only see the brown bear's furry back from my position, so I started making my way slowly through the foxes to see what was going on. Taking out what must've been the twentieth fox, I finally got a clear view of what was happening.

Tigress was standing, body completely rigid. She looked like she was torn between two things; desperation was slightly evident on her face.

"Tigress?" I called, tentative. "What's going on?"

She looked over at me, her facial features hardening to show less emotion.

"Po," she said calmly, "get the others and bring them here."

I looked down at her hand as I saw movement there, and watched briefly as she clenched her paw into a fist and held out one finger, slightly. Understanding what she meant, I nodded and turned to find the others.

I then noticed that the foxes weren't attacking me. Giving them a wary look, I continued on my way to Viper.

"Hey, Viper!"

She knocked another canine down before turning to me. "What?"

"Help me find the others! We need to get to Tigress, and fast! But don't attack Niko. Zhēn is in danger!" I told her, holding up one finger.

She nodded and promptly went toward Crane.

It didn't take long to gather everyone, and we were soon going toward Tigress.

"It's about time you five showed up," Niko growled.

We nodded and stood by Tigress firmly.

Zhēn looked slightly confused when she realized that Master Shifu was nowhere to be seen, but that emotion was taken over by terror as Niko pressed his claws harder against her throat.

"Where is the red panda?" Niko questioned, looking around suspiciously.

Shifu instantly appeared next to the enormous bear and, with one powerful strike, knocked Niko over. Shifu hurriedly got the bear into a choke hold, and Niko let out a roar of pain as Shifu bent his neck.

"Attack!" Hēisè De Dúyè commanded, and the army of foxes charged toward us, brandishing their swords and hammers.

And with a united battle cry, me and my friends and master charged right back at them.

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><p>I bowled foxes over in my determination to reach Zhēn, who had a very large chance of being killed in the intense battle.<p>

"Tigress!"

I turned direction immediately; that voice belonged to the young cougar.

"Tigress! Help!"

I put more effort into my sprint, willing my legs to go faster. There wasn't just desperation in Zhēn's voice, there was raw terror.

"I'm coming! Hold on!" I shouted back, hoping that she could hear me through the din of the battle.

Finally, I managed to escape the horde of foxes and saw that Hēisè De Dúyè was carrying little Zhēn roughly by the scruff of her neck. Zhēn's expression was twisted with pain.

"You'll pay deeply for what you've done, Hēisè De Dúyè!" I roared, catching up with the Komodo dragon and purposefully charging into her.

The large lizard stumbled from the force of my attack and dropped Zhēn. I swiftly got back to my feet and ran over to the young cougar, hoping that she was all right.

"Are you okay?" I asked her worriedly, picking her up gently and looking her over.

"I-I don't know," Zhēn replied, on the verge of tears. "My neck hurts."

"Stay here, and don't go anywhere closer to the battle," I ordered, setting her carefully back down. "I'll protect you, I promise."

She nodded somberly and watched as I turned to face the evil Komodo dragon.

Who was nowhere in sight.

"Over here, Tigress."

Looking up, I instantly spotted Hēisè De Dúyè standing several feet away, smirking triumphantly. My blood ran cold as I realized that Zhēn and I were surrounded by archers.

"Now, you will pay for your acts against me and the Knights," the lizard stated. She glanced at the archers around her, looked back at me, grinned evilly, and issued one command.

"Fire!"

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><p>The battle was taking longer than I had expected.<p>

Already I must have defeated forty foxes, but they kept jumping back up and into the fight, unless, of course, they were literally knocked out.

I could see Crane, Viper, Monkey, Mantis and Shifu, but I realized that Tigress and Zhēn were nowhere in sight. Although, part of that could be caused by the fact that I was only facing one direction.

Turning around in a full circle while taking down a fox at the same time, I almost instantly spotted the two felines, just a little ways away. But I also noticed that at least ten archers were surrounding them, and they were obviously in trouble.

"Hey guys!" I called to my friends and master. I could tell that I had gotten their attention, even though they all kept fighting. "We have to go help Tigress and Zhēn!"

Already knowing that they would follow my lead, I started making my way through the horde of foxes. I smiled to myself when I saw that their numbers were thinning; they were losing. Kicking one canine away and punching another, I finally got to where the archers and my friends were.

"Fire!"

I heard Hēisè De Dúyè command her archers, and I froze in horror when they all complied, their arrows all flying through the air and toward Tigress.

The next few seconds seemed to pass by in slow motion. Tigress grabbed Zhēn and performed a backflip, then set the small cougar down to hit a couple more arrows off course. Then she suddenly looked extremely unstable, as if she might just fall over at any moment.

I ran over to her, worried about the fact that she abruptly looked very weak; her eyes looked bleary and unfocused.

And then she abruptly fell limply backward.

"Tigress!" My voice was mixed with Zhēn's as we both bolted forward, catching Tigress just before she hit the ground.

"What's wrong?" Zhēn's voice was frail with anxiety.

"She fainted from loss of blood," Master Shifu answered as he darted in front of us, hitting a few arrows away. "We need to get out of here, quickly!" he told us, and we nodded our agreement.

"Po, carry Tigress. Viper, help him. Crane, Monkey, and Mantis, help me cover them," the red panda ordered, sending more arrows off course with a few swift hand movements.

"What do I do?" Zhēn inquired, wanting to feel useful.

"You can help me and Viper carry Tigress," I suggested.

"Okay!"

"Surround them! Kill them all!" Hēisè De Dúyè commanded her army of foxes, obviously enraged about the fact that her plan hadn't worked out how she'd wanted it to.

I hurriedly picked Tigress up bridal style, feeling extremely awkward. I forced myself not to look at her for fear of seeing all the blood that practically coated her back from the four long gashes that Hēisè De Dúyè had given her. I turned and started running as fast as I could while carrying Tigress, which wasn't actually very fast at all. I knew that the others were protecting me, and I felt adrenaline rush through my veins.

Everyone was in great danger, but I knew that Tigress was in the most danger. She was getting closer and closer to bleeding out, and we couldn't stop to help her without being surrounded by the foxes.

"Hurry!" Viper encouraged, slithering along beside me. "We're almost to the mountain!"

Looking up in surprise, I saw that we were only about thirty yards from where a line of trees started. Still, however, we had a long ways to go, and I feared that Tigress didn't have that much time.

"Wait!"

I turned my head to look at the Komodo dragon, who had spoken that one word.

"Stop attacking them," she ordered, and her army immediately slowed to a stop. "They'll die on their own from here."

We halted, watching as the Crimson Knights charged around us and into the woods. It didn't take long until they had disappeared completely into the dense woods.

I set Tigress down, and Shifu was at her side in an instant, checking her over.

"Mantis, Crane and Viper," he said, "come and help me here. Po, Zhēn, and Monkey, keep a lookout in case they come back."

We nodded and did as we were told, and I was glad that I didn't have to watch as they helped clean and bandage Tigress' wound.

"Will she be okay?" little Zhēn asked me, her eyes filled with worry and fear.

I tried my best to hide my own anxiety, but to no avail. "I think so," was all I could say. I honestly didn't know, but how could I tell Zhēn that?

The next few minutes passed in tense silence, with only Shifu's commands toward his students breaking the quiet.

"What is this?"

We turned toward Shifu, who had spoken.

"What?" I questioned, curious.

Master Shifu's eyes widened in realization. "Oh no."

"What now?"

"We need to wake up Tigress as soon as possible," he told us.

"Okay, but _why?" _I pressed.

"Hēisè De Dúyè had some sort of a poison on her claws."

"_More _poison?" Worry filled Viper's voice.

Shifu nodded. "But this is not the killing kind. It is a kind of hallucination liquid. Basically, Tigress will have nightmares instead of dreams because she will hallucinate in her dreams, filling them with her greatest fears."

I groaned. "Seriously?"

He nodded again. "She should be fine now, but she will probably not get much sleep for a while. And if any of you see her twisting and turning in her sleep, wake her up, but be careful so that she does not strike you."

"She's really okay though?" I tentatively asked, noticing for the first time the full-torso bandage that was visible under Tigress' red vest.

"She should be. She lost a lot of blood, though, so she will be unconscious for some time." He looked around at our surroundings. "We are too exposed out in the plains. We must get into the forest on the base of the mountain. We will camp there."

We nodded in agreement, and I picked Tigress back up, noticing with dread that she still looked like she was in pain.

"Master Shifu? Are you _sure _that she's all right?" I inquired again.

The Grand Master sighed. "Most likely. We will just have to wait and see, Po."

"Okay."

We traveled in the still quiet of the still-rising sun, and I hoped desperately that Tigress would make it through the ordeal.

* * *

><p><em>The moon reflected off of the surface of the still water, which rippled wildly as I moved my foot through it.<em>

_I was sitting in front of a lake, and it was so large that I could hardly see the other side of the body of water. The nearly-clear liquid lapped quietly at the shore, and small, weak waves were created as the water hit the rock I was sitting on and bounced back off of it. Everything was so peaceful, so tranquil, that it seemed like nothing could or would go wrong._

_But I knew, from experience, that moments like this usually didn't last for long._

_As if on cue, an ear-piercing howl cut through the silence, and I looked around frantically for the source of the sound, my claws unsheathing instinctively._

_Suddenly the whitish light covering the lake turned a dark red, and I looked up to see that the moon had turned the color of blood._

_Feeling the water flowing around my legs abruptly turn sticky and thick, I looked down and let out a gasp of horror._

_The water of the lake had turned into blood._

* * *

><p><strong>Dun dun DUUUUUUN! What on Earth just happened? Most, if not all of you will probably recognize that it <strong>_**may **_**be caused by the hallucination liquid Shifu was talking about. Heheh.**

**So, please review and tell me what you think will happen! Do you think that the hallucinations will also happen outside of her dreams? What do you awesome people think Hēisè De Dúyè meant by "They'll die on their own from here."? WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT?**

***ahem* Anyway, I would love to thank my reviewers,**_** RevDragon**_**, **_**AnimationGirl, bookworm600, Tigressfan12, OscarMerrinoz96, D, CloverHeart609, **_**and**_** Duncan-Gwen-Roxx! **_**Seriously, THANK YOU guys and gals! You're the reason why this story is still going!**

**Have a great day/night, everyone! =D**


	16. Hallucinations

**I apologize sincerely for the long wait. The reason this came so late is because I got an enormous project in school. Actually, it wasn't an enormous project when I first got it, but it was that I had to write a 'short' story. After many more students and I turned it in, all of the students in the class had to proofread each other's stories, and then the author of that story would take it home and clear out the mistakes that were found, and then proceed to turn it back in. After that, the process was repeated several times. So, that is why this took so long to write and post; I had had to use all of my writing time for the short story! But now the project is done, so I can continue writing this. =D Hurray!**

**Anonymous review replies:**

_**D – **_**Wow! Dude, you reviewed five times? Whoa! Thank you! Anyway, your feeling about poison was correct. =D Hmmm… you just might be onto something there… some important things will be revealed this and next chapter, so you'll have to read on and find out! And wow! You **_**have **_**done a lot of research! You know, I just might use that here… but you'll have to wait and see! And you're totally right; on all stories most reviews are just a few words with exclamation points. I'm extremely glad to have reviewers like you (and a few other people, of course) who actually take the time to write more than that. And I know that the cliffhanger on that last chapter was probably killer for some people. ;D And I'll tell you now; all will be revealed eventually. And man, you're a deep thinker!**

_**Tigressfan12 – **_**Haha, yeah. Hallucinations can be **_**so **_**creepy. Trust me; I know about it. :)**

_**whiteleg25 – **_**Thank you so much! That truly means a lot to me. Thanks for your review and support! And again, sorry for the extremely late update. =}**

**Anyway, here's chapter sixteen! Hope all you guys and gals enjoy! ;D**

**This chapter starts in Po's point of view.**

* * *

><p>Tigress didn't look peaceful in the slightest. Her eyes were squeezed shut in an expression of pain, and she kept tossing and turning in her sleep. What I was worried most about, however, was her unsheathed claws.<p>

I knew that Shifu had told me to wake her up if she started thrashing like she was now, but I was afraid that I would get hurting trying to wake her.

Deciding that I would take a chance to free her from her obvious nightmare, I slowly crept forward, holding my breath as I came closer to her.

"Tigress? Hey Tigress, wake up! It, um, it's just a dream!" I called softly to her, gently touching her arm.

When she didn't respond to my touch, or, at least, I didn't think she did, then I tried a different tactic; I grabbed her shoulder and shook her.

It worked.

She abruptly bolted upright, and I yelped and jumped back in order to not get hit by her outstretched claws that came at me.

"Tigress! It's just me!" I told her in an effort to calm her down.

The fur on the back of her neck slowly eased until it was flat again.

"I-uh, sorry, Po," she hastily apologized, and I noticed that she quickly hid the slight fear in her eyes as she turned away.

"Um…" I started. "Master Shifu found out that Hēisè De Dúyè had some sort of poison on her claws when she… got you."

She turned back to face me. "What?"

"It's, uh, some sort of hallucination poison that makes you, well, hallucinate in your dreams. He said something like it makes you have nightmares or something."

"Oh. That makes sense," she stated simply, and settled back down on her mat. "Goodnight, Po."

"'Night, Tigress," I returned, feeling a bit awkward.

_She can't really blow problems off just like that, can she? _I thought silently, watching as she turned her back to me.

Sighing softly, I got back into my watching position, noticing for the first time how quiet the forest seemed.

Not even a single cricket could be heard; the only thing I could hear was the crackle of the dying campfire we'd made. The lack of sound confused me greatly; weren't forests supposed to be filled with life and sounds?

Shaking the thought away, I glanced back at Tigress. She seemed motionless; the only movement I could see was the steady rise and fall of her side. I suspected that she wasn't asleep, but I wasn't about to test that theory.

Turning back to look at the trees and other foliage around me, I silently marveled at the range of the types of plants. There were so many; some with large leaves, some with small; some with berries, some without; some with thorns, some with smooth stems, and so on. There was a wide variety of berries as well; some blue, some red, some white, some even black. Everything was so diverse.

Shaking my head, I tried to take my mind off of the plants and back to the task at hand; being the lookout in case the Crimson Knights, or anyone else, came by.

I looked up; things could be hiding in the trees too. But everything looked tranquil; only the slight breeze ruffled the leaves.

I sighed again and waited for my turn to watch finish, already anticipating when I could go to sleep.

* * *

><p>I closed my eyes in an attempt to sleep, but I was greeted instantly by the images of the nightmare.<p>

Opening my eyes again, I glanced over my shoulder at Po. He was just sitting at the edge of our little camp, and he was looking around. I wasn't sure if he was actually searching for something, and I hoped that he was doing his duty as the lookout.

I sighed inwardly, wishing that I could somehow get to sleep without having a nightmare. But, from what Po had told me, that was definitely not going to happen.

_Stupid Komodo dragon, _I thought sourly to myself. Because of her, I was more than likely going to become sleep deprived. _And if I can't concentrate, I can't fight, and then… _I couldn't finish the thought.

_I have to go to sleep. _With that thought in mind and the reminder that my friends and master needed me, I slowly fell into a restless sleep.

_Fire was everywhere._

_I looked around frantically, searching for an escape. But as far as I could see, there was no way out of the burning building that I was in._

_I quickly ran towards the wall, intending to bust right through it, but the floorboards suddenly gave way beneath me, and I plummeted into the basement of the building. Growling to myself as I landed on all fours, I looked back up at the hole I had made while falling._

_I hissed in pain when burning ashes fell into my eyes, and I tried to rub the pain away. It hardly worked, however, and I had to blink several times to get the ashes out of my eyes. I then squeezed my eyes shut as pain seared through them, before opening them again and forcing myself to stand and look at my surroundings._

_Abruptly I heard wood creak and break, and I had to jump out of the way of falling, burning wood as it crashed on to the place I had just been standing. Thinking fast, I hurriedly launched myself up and back through the hole I'd made, and I ran back toward the wall I had targeted earlier._

_Narrowing my eyes in determination, I jumped up and kicked through the wall, and I breathed a sigh of relief when I felt cold night air rush into the building. I immediately started running as fast as I could, and I almost instantly felt myself falling._

_Alarmed that I had tripped and aware that the fire was right behind me, I swiftly got back to my feet and continued my charge away from the wooden, burning building._

_Suddenly thunder sounded, louder than I have ever heard it, and I watched in horror as lightning struck the ground just barely to my right. Startled, I didn't see the clawed fist coming towards my head until it was too late, and I was flung backward. A single, horrendous image flashed past me; a dark figure with glowing bright red claws, blood running freely from the creature's blood-red eyes. At least, that's what it looked like._

_I grunted in pain as I practically smashed into a large rock, and everything went black as pain exploded through my head._

* * *

><p>I heard a hiss, and immediately went rigid. I looked around, searching for the source of the sound, until my gaze finally rested on Tigress. She wasn't facing me, so I tentatively walked over to her and placed my paw on her shoulder.<p>

She didn't react.

Taking a deep breath, I turned her so that she was facing me. My eyes widened when I saw her expression, which was filled with pain and terror. Wondering how she had ever been able to fall back asleep, I quickly shook her.

No response.

Worried, I shook her again, harder this time. I got a reaction.

Tigress' eyes snapped open, and she bolted upright. "Po…?" She sighed, and I could feel her relax slightly. "Thanks for waking me up again."

"Uh… no problem, Tigress. How'd you manage to get back to sleep, anyway?"

She shrugged. "I wish I hadn't."

"Oh… do you want to talk about it?" I suggested. "Talking about my nightmares has always helped me."

She shook her head. "You get some sleep. I'll keep watch."

"But—"

She cut me off with a sharp glare, and I put my hands up in surrender. "Okay, okay. But only 'cause you want to."

She stood and walked a few paces away before sitting down. Uneasy, I went over to my sleeping mat and settled down, hoping that Tigress was really okay.

* * *

><p>I took a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves. I knew that dawn was approaching quickly; I could already see the light of the steadily rising sun as it made its way into the dark sky.<p>

Standing, I started waking up my comrades, starting with Shifu and ending with Zhēn.

"Tigress! Are you okay?" the young cougar exclaimed, all sleep gone from her in an instant.

I smiled slightly and nodded. "I'm fine, Zhēn." I glanced around at the surrounding forest. "Are you going to continue with us on our journey or go back home?"

She hesitated. "What do you want me to do?"

"It's your choice, Zhēn."

She took a deep breath. "I'll go home. I'm not very good at fighting, and I would probably just make things worse."

I knelt so that I was eye-level with her, placing my paws on her shoulders in an act of comfort. "Zhēn, you're _much_ more of a help than a burden. Trust me. And when you go, just please be safe."

She smiled genuinely. "Thanks, Tigress. I will."

"We will eat and then make sure that you get to the plains safely," Master Shifu told her.

She nodded. "Okay."

We said our farewells, and watched as Zhēn quickly made her way back through the plains.

"What now?" Po asked when Zhēn was out of sight.

"We search for the Knight's fortress and eliminate them," Shifu answered simply.

"But where should we look?" Po gestured weakly at the looming mountain. "There are probably hundreds of places to look!"

Shifu sighed. "I know. Do any of you have ideas as to where they may be hiding?"

"They're probably near the center of the mountain," I suggested. "They might have more protection there than other places."

Shifu nodded in agreement. "Then we should start going into the mountain."

And with that, we set off back into the thick forest, moving quickly through the thousands of trees surrounding us.

A tense silence fell over us as we traveled; the entire mountain seemed empty. Not a single sound penetrated the still quiet of the air. This, of course, was not comforting in the slightest. We had been walking for hours, and there was still no sign of life. To make things worse, dark clouds were covering the sky, threatening to pour rain down on us at any second. Plus, darkness was beginning to fall already.

As we started making camp in a small clearing, I heard the very faint, distant sound of a twig snapping. Perking my ears, I closed my eyes to enhance my hearing slightly.

I angled my ears backward, and heard a noise so quiet that I almost thought that I had imagined it.

Not willing to take a risk, I whirled around and growled. "Who's there?"

Abruptly a loud, angry squeal sounded, and a huge boar charged out of the bushes directly in front of me. Having close to no time to react, I jumped lightly, shouting a warning to my friends and master. I flipped and seized the tail of the animal that was nearly my size, pulling and causing the boar to turn the direction of its charge back towards me. Releasing its tail, I quickly dodged the attack and managed to grab one of the boar's tusks, steering him into a tree, which shook violently as the huge creature's head rammed into the wood.

I ran towards my friends and master, glancing back at the boar. "Let's go!"

Dazed, it fell over. I turned and swiftly followed the others closely, on all fours. Several seconds later, I heard the boar squeal furiously and heard its hooves hitting the dirt hard; the animal was again pursuing us.

"Faster!" I urged my comrades. "It's gaining on us!"

Soon we were at full speed, with me helping Po along. I feared that the boar was also at full speed though; I could easily hear its pounding hooves getting closer and closer.

Suddenly I felt its hot breath on my tail, and the fur on the back of my neck spiked as instinct kicked in.

"Go!" I shouted, immediately turning and slashing the boar's muzzle.

It squealed in pain and halted, shaking its head vigorously. Hoping that I had given my comrades and I enough time to put distance and maybe even escape the boar, I quickly turned tail and sprinted to catch up with the others.

"Look!" Viper called, gaining all of our attention. "There's a cave over there!"

"Go! I'll distract the boar!" Monkey suggested.

With a nod of agreement, we veered off toward the cave while Monkey shouted to attract the boar's attention.

We hurried into the cave that Viper mentioned, with all of us hoping that Monkey was alright and that the boar would eventually leave.

"Is everyone okay?" Shifu asked us.

We nodded. Abruptly we heard the boar squeal in fright and pain, before hearing its hooves stomping away.

"Guys! Get out here!" Monkey yelled, alarming us.

"What is it?" Po inquired as we swiftly jogged out of the cave.

Looking up, I noticed that Monkey was in a tree.

"What is wrong?" Shifu questioned, looking around.

"That… is that what I think it is?"

"Huh?" Po turned around to look at where Monkey was pointing. He gasped.

Confused, the rest of us followed suit, and we were all shocked at what we saw.

Up high, on a large cliff, at least a hundred animals were staring at us. There were a huge variety of creatures, ranging from snakes to bears to tigers. They were dressed all in the same attire; pitch-black clothing. It was impossible to tell if they were friend or foe, but I guessed by the darkness of the fabric of their clothes that they were the latter. All I could see of the animals was their eyes; the black clothes covered everything else.

"Uh…" Po backed up nervously. "They don't seem to like us…"

The cliff the numerous animals stood on was about a hundred yards away. As we were watching the horde of animals, one of them moved to the very edge of the sheer cliff, which was at least twenty feet high. The creature looked like… an ox. A second, smaller animal came up beside the ox. Confusion clouded my mind when I realized that animal was a crocodile.

"Hey, is that…?" Po's voice drifted off.

"I think so, but we cannot be sure," Shifu replied.

Suddenly the army of animals started charging down the less-steep sides of the cliff, toward us. Shifu gave the command to stay where we were; resistance against an army that large would be futile.

It didn't take long for the numerous animals to reach us, and when they did, they swarmed us and surrounded us on all sides, making escape impossible. The ox and croc stepped forward, right in front of Master Shifu.

"State your name and quest here," the ox demanded. I could've sworn his voice sounded familiar, but I wasn't entirely sure.

"I am Grand Master Shifu, and we are here to exterminate the Crimson Knights," Shifu responded.

"Grand Master Shifu…?" The ox's eyes widened. He glanced around. "Follow us. Knights, keep them in line!"

The horde of animals pushed us into a single-file line, with Shifu in front and Viper in back. We obediently followed the ox and croc, and they quickly led us to a humongous cavern, although it looked almost handmade.

The ox stopped and turned to Shifu. "Do you know who we are?" He gestured at himself and the crocodile next to him.

Shifu nodded. "Masters Ox and Croc?"

The ox pulled down the fabric that covered his mouth, revealing a small smile. "When we first saw you out there, I could hardly believe my eyes. I wasn't sure it was the real you, so that is why I asked."

"How did you get here? Have the Crimson Knights confronted you?" Shifu was obviously full of questions, although I think it's safe to say that we all were.

"For now, you and your warriors should rest, Master Shifu. We can tell stories over a fire tonight. I have my own questions, you know," Ox told him.

Shifu nodded his agreement.

"So… Where are we?" Po asked, looking around the large cave.

The ceiling of the cave reached up about five yards from the ground, but the cave itself stretched back at least twenty yards, with only one unlit torch on the wall to light it up. There were stacks of wood at the back as well, which I guessed were used to keep a campfire going. In the middle of the cave, burnt wood and ashes littered the floor over an area of about three feet around. Sleeping mats and supplies were also in a back corner, making it quite clear that this was Masters Ox and Croc's current 'base', if you could call it that.

"You're in a cave that's used quite a lot by Crimson Knights. We come here usually whenever there's bad weather and when we're too far from the fortress when night falls," a male cheetah explained. "It's extremely dangerous at night this close to the volcano, so—"

"Volcano?" Po exclaimed, obviously scared. "We're near a _volcano?"_

The Knight looked surprised. "You don't have need to fear. It's been inactive for decades. Otherwise there wouldn't be nearly as much vegetation here."

"There is one thing to fear when we attack the real Knights, however," Ox told us.

"What is it?" Po asked tentatively.

I wasn't sure I wanted to hear the answer either, frankly. But Master Ox continued with only slight hesitation, and what he said next shocked us and struck new fear into all of us who hadn't heard the news before.

"The Knight's fortress is inside the volcano, and if we attack it, they can cause the volcano to erupt."

* * *

><p><strong>Dun dun duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuun! Ooh, another surprise! Even for me… a lot of the content of this chapter was just written as I got to it. But how are they going to attack the fortress now? Especially when the Crimson Knights have the power to make the volcano erupt at any moment… now <strong>_**that **_**is scary! O.o**

**I'd love to thank my reviewers; **_**FyreDragon5, RevDragon, D, AnimationGirl, Duncan-Gwen-Roxx, OscarMerrinoz96, CloverHeart609, whiteleg25, **_**and **_**Iridescent Bookworm. **_**You guys and gals are so amazing! Thank you, **_**thank you **_**for taking time out of your busy day to read and review! I can't tell you just how much I appreciate it. It's because of you, my readers and reviewers, that I have become such a writer as I am today. So honestly, thank you all **_**so **_**much!**

**Have a great day/night, everyone! I'll be sure to update ASAP, although a week or two might pass between updates. Thank you all for your endless support! It really means a lot to me. =D**

**-Avatarcatz2323-**


	17. The Plan

**I'm sad at the number of reviews, to be honest. I had hoped that people would stay with this story and understand that I can't devote **_**all **_**of my time to just write… Sincerely, I try to get these chapters up ASAP, but I have a busy schedule. But I'm **_**so **_**grateful to those that **_**did **_**review! Seriously, thank you **_**so **_**much!**

**Anonymous review reply**

_**D – **_**Hey, it's totally fine! I understand completely. And seriously, wow! You've really thought a lot about what's happened! Well, at least one of your questions will be answered with this chapter! And trust me, I'm doing all I can to get this chapters written as fast as possible! Thanks so much for your review and support!**

**And here's chapter 17! Enjoy, everyone! And **_**please **_**leave an at least somewhat thorough review!**

**This chapter starts in Tigress' point of view.**

* * *

><p>"What?" my comrades and I exclaimed.<p>

"In a _volcano?" _Po continued. "And they can make the volcano _erupt?"_

"I'm afraid so," Master Ox replied. "But Master Croc and I have a plan, so listen up because I'm only going to tell it once."

Everyone, including the warriors besides us, straightened and perked their ears, ready and, in Po's case, excited to hear the plan. I could clearly see the emotion in his green eyes when I glanced briefly at him.

"We will start by handcuffing you in eight-point acupressure cuffs," he told my comrades and I. "You will have to act unwilling; as if we captured you. The small army I command, as well as Master Croc and myself, will bring you through the Knights' fortress and into the prison cells. You must be separated and won't be able to talk to each other very well, but Master Croc and I will give you information as it is needed." He glanced at Mantis, who was perched on Monkey's shoulder. "Master Mantis, Croc will take you secretly from your cell to the machine that can cause the eruption of the volcano. He will quickly drop you off there, and you will have exactly thirty minutes to figure out how to shut it off."

Mantis raised a spiked forearm, signaling that he had a question. "Why can't I get more time?"

"Because Max and Xang will be guarding your cells for only forty minutes before they switch places with two other guards," Croc explained, gesturing at a cheetah and a fox. "It takes about three minutes for me to travel to the machine."

"Where am I going to hide?" Mantis asked.

"In here." Croc opened up a small, black pouch with several gold coins in it.

Experimentally, Mantis hopped into the bag and crouched down as Croc carefully closed it by pulling the two thin strings tight.

"This'll work!" his voice, muffled by the dark fabric, emanated from the bag.

Croc reopened it, and Mantis came back out, making his way hastily back on to Monkey's shoulder.

"When Croc opens his pouch just enough to let you through the top," Ox continued, "you will silently and swiftly come out and start on the machine. You will be carried back to your cell in the same manner as you were taken to the machine, and you will tell us what you found out about it while we're guarding the cells that you will be locked up in. With enough luck, Mantis, you will be able to quietly disable the machine. If not, you may get another chance."

"When do we put this plan to action?" Shifu spoke up.

"Tomorrow. Get a good night's rest, everyone," Master Ox told us, retrieving a large sleeping mat from the corner and spreading it out on the cave floor.

"Master Ox?" I said hesitantly. "Do you know an antidote for the poison that makes you hallucinate in your dreams?"

He paused. "Hēisè De Dúyè infected you with it, didn't she?"

I nodded.

"I do know the antidote for it. Hold on." He turned and rummaged through a large bag, before pulling out a translucent sack of gray powder. "This is Èmèng Zhìyù. It's a plant that has been ground into powder, and if you eat it or drink it it'll help you sleep, and will counteract the poison."

"Thanks."

I watched as he set the sack down and grabbed a small canteen from the large bag. He poured some of the powder into the canteen and gave it to me. I took it gratefully.

"Just drink this tonight, and you should stop having nightmares soon."

"Will Hēisè De Dúyè get suspicious?"

"She might, but I highly doubt that she'll look into it much. Get some sleep tonight; we will get up early in the morning tomorrow. Goodnight, Master Tigress."

"Goodnight, Master Ox."

I gently swirled the canteen, hoping to mix the powder in a bit more. Then, I drank it. Surprisingly enough, the mixture tasted sweet with just a slight touch of sourness. I finished the liquid in the canteen before screwing the cap back on and laying it down by my sleeping mat.

It didn't take long to fall asleep, and I was extremely grateful for the uninterrupted, blissful darkness that came.

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"So this is it?" Po asked, his voice filled with excitement.

"This is it," Master Ox confirmed. "And remember; act as if we caught you by force. We can't afford to mess this up."

"What _will _happen if we mess this up?" the panda tentatively inquired.

Ox stopped his march and turned to make eye contact with Po. "Then we'll all most likely die. The Knights have more than a hundred foxes in their ranks."

Po gulped and continued following Ox as he started walking again.

"You just _had _to ask, didn't you?" Mantis commented. He was in a cage between Po's hands, similar to when we were taken into Shen's palace.

I sighed. "Let's just focus. Think like we're going to be completely successful."

"Uh, okay…" Po's voice trailed off, but a tiny smile appeared on his face.

We remained silent for the next two hours, with the only sound coming from our own footfalls. My comrades and I gave a collective gasp of shock at the sight before us as we reached the top of what seemed to be a hill.

Not three feet from where we stood, a sheer cliff dropped down over 100 yards, and at the bottom was molten lava. I could easily feel the heat from where I stood, and I couldn't imagine how hot it would be if I was just a few feet above it. Looking back up from down there, I realized that we were at the very top of the volcano.

"Um, Master Ox?" Po began. "What are we doing all the way up here?"

"Don't call me that here," Ox warned. "You must pretend that you don't know any of us."

"Oh, okay."

"Follow us. Everyone single file!" he called, and let Master Croc lead the large group.

Croc walked confidently toward the edge of the volcano, before turning and starting down stairs that were barely noticeable; they were carved into the side of the hot volcano. The staircase was very short, only about ten steps, and slowly curved into the mountain. When we were out of the majority of the heat and actually in the mountain, we came to a metal door.

The stairs had lead us into a small cave-like overhang of rock, and the door was set about five feet from the last stair. Master Croc retrieved a key from his black cloak and unlocked the door, before leading the way inside.

We were greeted instantly by complete darkness as the last Knight closed the dark, metal door.

"Whoa!" Po exclaimed. "Why is it so dark in here?"

"To deter those that try to break in," Master Ox answered. "Now be quiet, prisoner."

"Oh, right…" His voice drifted off.

Abruptly light flooded around us, and I blinked a few times to adjust to the firelight; Croc had lit a torch.

"Keep moving," he commanded, and turned to continue travelling.

We continued down the stone passageway, and walked through several different branches. There were so many that I could hardly keep track. Then, we entered a huge room, the high roof supported by an occasional metal beam. The roof of the cave stretched up over twelve feet, and the back of the room was several yards away from where we were standing. I could clearly tell that this was a prison just by looking around.

Toward the back of the room, a stone rectangular block rested on the ground. Off to the sides of the cavern, I could see about a dozen prison cells on each side. Passing a few, I could see that the back of the cells were just about five feet from the metal bars that blocked the way into the larger cave. Shackles and fetters littered the ground in every unoccupied cell.

We were separated as we were put into the prison cells, and we all had at least one cell in between us. Mantis, Monkey, Po, and Viper were put into left cells, while Shifu, Crane, and I were put into ones on the right.

"Sorry, we have to separate you. Hēisè De Dúyè will get very angry if we don't," Master Croc told me as he put me in shackles. "Speaking of her, she'll talk to you soon." He glanced around, almost nervously. "Don't tell her I said that."

I gave him a small smile of amusement. "Do you really think that I would tell anyone?"

He grinned back in response.

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Sure enough, as Croc had said, Hēisè De Dúyè didn't take long to visit me.

"You warriors will finally meet your doom." She stood with her clawed hands behind her back.

"Why haven't we before?" I shot back. "You've had plenty of chances."

She narrowed her black eyes. "Do you really expect me to answer that?"

"Why wouldn't you? If you're going to kill us now, at least tell us why now and not before."

She paused, contemplating. Finally, she made eye contact with me again. "Fine, have it your way. We can't kill any of you."

"What?" I was honestly shocked, although I tried to hide the emotion. "Why?"

She glanced away. "Because we're under an oath. But soon we won't be, and then you will be taken care of."

"You're under an oath? What oath?"

"That would be giving too much information, wouldn't it?" She grinned eerily. "You may know eventually."

"If I could rip you to shreds, I would," I growled, flexing my fists. I knew that the fetters and chains were there, even though I couldn't feel the ones around my wrists.

"Then that's a quality we both share."

"We are _nothing _alike!" I snarled, striking out at her. The chains held me back however, and Hēisè De Dúyè was just out of reach.

She chuckled, not fazed in the slightest by my attempt to claw her face. "You need to learn to control your temper, kitty."

That set my temper off. I roared in fury and did everything in my power to get at her. But the strong, metal shackles held, and I was left panting and infuriated. _How _dare _she call me that! _I slowly regained my composure, and glowered at the blasted Komodo dragon.

"You really can be quite entertaining, Tigress. I'll have you know that every one of my Knights crave to see you dead."

A bit taken aback by the bluntness of her statement, my eyes widened slightly.

Hēisè De Dúyè laughed. "That surprises you? I'm truly shocked, Tigress. You are the most powerful of your group, save the Grand Master and the Dragon Warrior. And yet here you are. Submissive to me, in my complete power. I could kill you now, but that would put my own life in danger. Maybe you'll learn before your dying day why. But who knows? Your death may come sooner than you think."

And with that, she left me in the darkness of my prison cell, utterly alone.

* * *

><p>I jumped, startled, as I heard Tigress roar loudly. It was obvious that she was beyond ticked off. I had seen Hēisè De Dúyè go into her cell, but I hadn't anticipated that the large lizard would make her <em>that <em>angry.

_Gosh, I hope she's not hurting Tigress! _I thought worriedly to myself. I walked as far as the shackles would let me, and I angled myself to try and see inside the cell that Tigress was in. But I couldn't; hers was too far away and too far to the right of mine.

I waited with baited breath, hoping that Tigress was okay. Then, I watched as Hēisè De Dúyè left the cell, closing and locking the metal door behind her. She looked over at me, briefly making eye contact. She smirked evilly, and then proceeded to walk out of the prison.

"Master Mantis, are you ready?" I heard Master Croc ask.

Mantis was just two cells to my left. "Go ahead and hide me!" he exclaimed, though quietly. "I'm more than ready to deactivate a machine!"

"Good."

I heard the sounds of Croc unlocking the small metal cage that Mantis was locked in, and I soon watched as Croc left the cell, hiding the small pouch for coins in his cloak.

I silently hoped that Mantis would be successful, and that he and Croc wouldn't be found out.

* * *

><p>Almost a half hour had passed before we saw Master Croc return to the prison and lock Mantis back up.<p>

Croc waited by Mantis' cell for a little while, made a shocked noise, and then quickly ran over to Master Shifu's cell. Perking my ears and angling them in Croc's direction, I listened in on what Croc was saying.

"Bad news, Master Shifu." Croc's tone was urgent, almost panicked.

"What is it?"

"Mantis was deactivating the machine when he discovered an emergency startup in it. If he had finished deactivating it, then the emergency startup would have immediately activated the volcano." Croc sighed. "It looks like we have to find some other way to escape."

Silence overcame the prison for a few moments, before Shifu disrupted it. "Did Mantis find any way to deactivate the emergency startup?"

"He didn't have enough time. Plus, I don't know if he'll get another chance before it's too late. Hēisè De Dúyè is planning on killing you all as soon as she can. I don't think that she's willing to wait very long." He lowered his voice so low, I could barely even hear it. And I don't think that I was meant to hear it. "She really wants to see Tigress dead."

Well, that wasn't very surprising. Still, Shifu paused.

"Why does she hate Tigress so much?" the Grand Master finally inquired quietly.

"I don't know, and the only thing I _do _know is that Hēisè De Dúyè has something against Tigress for a good reason. Well, she says it's a good reason anyway. No telling if there really is a good reason." The crocodile sighed again. "Master Shifu, I honestly am losing hope. The Crimson Knights seem to be winning this fight."

"No, they are _not!" _Shifu nearly shouted, startling both me and Croc. "Winning the battle with Shen seemed hopeless as well, but we pulled through that fight. We can win this one too!"

"I… You're right. I'm sorry, Grand Master Shifu."

"It is fine. We will all try to think of ways to escape. You and Master Ox should do the same."

"Yes, we will. Our current shift is almost over, but our next one will be tomorrow. We will share ideas then."

"Good. Go tell the others."

"Yes, Master Shifu."

I watched as Master Croc hurriedly ran over my friends on the other side of the prison and started updating them. I couldn't hear what he was saying, but I could see that Po, Monkey, Mantis, and Viper were listening intently just by their expressions.

"Master Shifu," I started.

"Yes, Tigress?"

"Do you have a plan?"

"I… I do not. I am honesty not entirely sure that we can get out of this myself…"

"Of course we can, Master Shifu! We've worked through problems before."

"You… you're right. Just… keep thinking of ways to escape. I fear that Hēisè De Dúyè will not spare us this time."

"Did you hear what she said earlier?"

"About the oath? Yes, and I think that she may not be the one completely in charge."

"What? Really? But who could be more powerful than Hēisè De Dúyè?"

He paused. "I don't know, Tigress. But someone very powerful and manipulative."

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I awoke with a start. Pricking my ears, I listened carefully for the sound that I thought I'd heard. Sure enough, I heard it again; a soft footstep.

"You _do _have great hearing."

Slightly startled, I sat up and stared the Komodo dragon in the eyes. She chuckled softly as she walked toward me.

"This won't hurt a bit."

"Wha—" I was cut off as she kicked me backward into the wall, causing pain to erupt through my skull as my head hit the hard stone.

Everything instantly went black.

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The first thing I felt was a dull but painful throbbing in my head. As I slowly opened my eyes, I had to blink several times to adjust to the bright torchlight.

"It's about time you woke up," an unfamiliar voice said. Yet, for some reason, the voice seemed distantly familiar…

Looking up, I saw something that completely shocked me.

A Southern Chinese tiger.

"Surprised?" he said, taking a step toward me. "You should be."

It was very obvious that he wasn't friendly. He glared down at me with his reddish, narrowed eyes. I was forced on my knees, so I had to look up to see his face. He wore a black cloak, with the hood down. His ears were back, almost against his head, in an aggressive position.

"Do you know who I am?" he questioned. His voice was smooth and deep, but I could sense the dangerous undertone.

"No," I answered stiffly.

He smirked, and I felt chills run down my spine; this animal seemed truly _evil._

"But I do seem familiar to you?"

"Yes," I hesitantly answered.

"Then you have a great memory. The last time you saw me, you were merely an infant."

My eyes widened, and I drew in a sharp intake of breath as images flooded my mind. He smiled.

"Good, you remember. Hēisè De Dúyè, take her back to her cell. And remember to keep to your oath."

As images continued to flash through my mind, the Komodo dragon hit my head with something hard, and it didn't take long for darkness to overcome me again.

* * *

><p><strong>WHAT? Who is this mysterious tiger? Could he possibly be related to Tigress? *gasps* What if he's her <strong>_**father? **_**But hey, I already know who he is! And you'll have to wait until at least next chapter to find out! Muwahaha! Oh, and for those who don't know; Tigress is a Southern Chinese tiger.**

**Thanks to my reviewers, I've found renewed strength to continue this story! I've had more story ideas for different things, but I'm sticking with this one 'til the end! Oh, and I've fixed chapter 16.**

**Huge thanks to **_**FyreDragon5, Tigressfan12, Lord of the Tsurani, OscarMerrinoz96, D, AnimationGirl, **_**and **_**RevDragon **_**for their reviews and support! I'll admit that I'm quite sad to see that several people have stopped reading and reviewing, but I'm **_**so **_**glad that some people like my story enough to review! Seriously, it means **_**so much **_**to me! So please, review! I really need your support!**

**Have a great day/night, everyone!**


	18. Realization

**Alright, here's chapter 18! Hope you all enjoy! And, believe it or not, I think that the end of this story is drawing nigh… I'm not entirely sure though; anything could happen!**

**This chapter is a bit interesting… with quite a lot of action and a few flashbacks. Oh, and the flashbacks will be in **_**italics, **_**and aren't separated by a line break in this chapter**_**. **_**Everything else is in regular format. This is going to be an insane chapter, filled with surprises and intenseness! Are you ready?**

**This chapter starts in Tigress' POV.**

* * *

><p>"What?" Shifu exclaimed. "A Southern Chinese tiger? Are you sure?"<p>

"Shifu, he looks almost exactly like me," I responded. "I'm not sure, but I think that I'm related to him somehow."

"Why do you think that?"

"Because he seems familiar… and he said that he saw me last as an infant." I sighed. "I'm so confused. Who do you think he is?"

"I…" he stopped, and when he spoke next his voice was almost a whisper. "Hēisè De Dúyè is coming."

I perked my ears and, sure enough, I could hear the unmistakable sound of a Komodo dragon's claws scraping on the floor as she walked. When she came into view, I was slightly surprised at the glower that was pasted on her face. A couple other foxes were with her, looking almost just as grim. I instantly recognized one of them as Chóuhèn. I growled at her, and she growled back until Hēisè De Dúyè cut her off with a sharp glare.

"Someone wants to see you again," the lizard told me, opening the door and coming toward me.

It wasn't long before she knocked me out again.

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"Leave us," the tiger commanded Hēisè De Dúyè and the foxes. They gave a curt nod and left.

He stooped down so that he was eye level with me, as I was in a forced kneeling position again, this time with my hands cuffed together behind my back.

"Do you know who I am now?"

I stared up into his face, making eye contact. I glared at him for several moments before answering. "No."

He straightened up. Turning, he grabbed a torn, old cloak. It was dark blue, almost black, and was torn in a few places. He stooped back down again and put in front of my face.

"Is _this _familiar?"

I carefully sniffed. A distantly familiar scent covered it, although it was mixed with his scent as well. Abruptly images flooded into my mind. I jerked back, startled, and shut my eyes tightly as the memory washed over me.

"_Why don't you ever pay any attention to me? It's always _her _you care about. You don't even like me, do you?" a young, angry tiger spat at two adult tigers, one of which I was holding hands with._

_I stared at him, almost in fear. I hadn't ever seen him angry like this before._

"_I'm leaving," he growled, turning away and starting for the door that led outside._

_Mother, the female adult tiger, stepped toward him. "Tyrone, wait!"_

_He turned back, lashing out at her with claws extended. She jerked backward, gasping at him. Tyrone, the young tiger, sprinted out the door._

I shook my head and looked up at him. "You're Tyrone? You… you're my brother?"

He grinned evilly, sending chills down my spine. "You catch on fast, Tigress."

I stared at him as the memory continued, overwhelming me.

"_Let him go," my father said softly, placing a comforting paw on my mother's shoulder. "He'll come back."_

"_How can you be so sure?" She stared into his fiery orange eyes._

"_He'll come back," he repeated._

_Mother looked slightly less worried, but she stared at the now-closed door that Tyrone had left through. "Son," she whispered, "come back to me."_

I blinked and glared at Tyrone. "Why did you leave?"

He narrowed his eyes and turned away. "Our parents never loved me. They only loved you."

"How could you say that? They loved you just as much as they loved me." I could hardly believe what I was saying. How could I know that?

"How can you say that? You don't even remember them!" he snarled.

"I do now," I replied calmly.

He paused. "Do you realize your situation right now? So many want you dead, including me."

"Then why have you let all of us live for so long, when you've wanted us dead this whole time?" I shot back, my temper rising.

He gave me a quizzical look. "Are you suggesting that I kill you now?"

I glowered at him. "Of course not! Answer the question, Tyrone."

He hesitated. "I wanted to see you… To meet you."

"Why?"

He stared down at me, the intensity in his eyes replaced by interest. "I wanted to get to know my sister. I wanted to see how you turned out." He turned away. "And I wanted you to join me."

I was completely taken aback. "What?"

He faced me, his reddish eyes filled with anxiety. "Will you join me? Together we can destroy the Crimson Knights and take over China, as brother and sister!"

I stared up at him. "Never. You are evil and twisted. I will never join you."

Abruptly he jumped at me, pinning me to the ground with his claws at my throat. "I'll give you one more chance. Join me or die, sister."

"I would rather die," I responded curtly, using what air he hadn't cut off.

His eyes widened and he released my neck, standing. "Very well then."

And with that he bolted forward, jabbing my neck quickly. I jerked as pain surged through my body and consciousness faded.

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_I stared up sleepily into the amber eyes of my mother as she slowly rocked me to sleep. I yawned, and she chuckled._

"_My, my, that was a big yawn," she said, her tone filled with joy. "You're tired, aren't you?"_

_I cooed at her, feeling myself fall closer to sleep._

_Suddenly a loud crash sounded, and I was instantly wide awake. Mother clutched me protectively in her large paws as she stood up, facing a small tiger._

"_Tyrone? What are you doing up?" my mother asked him. "I thought your father already laid you down to sleep."_

"_Then why is _she _still up?" Tyrone shot back angrily, ignoring her question. "Shouldn't she be asleep too?"_

"_Yes, but she was having nightmares," she answered calmly. "Now please, put that desk back up and go to bed."_

"No!_" Tyrone yelled, throwing his fist into the back of the tipped desk. His fist went right through it, sending splinters everywhere._

"_Tyrone!" Mother scolded. "What are you doing?"_

"_All you care about is her! You and dad don't pay _any _attention to me at _all!" _In a complete fit of rage, Tyrone roared and charged toward us._

"_Tyrone, stop!" Mom shouted, taking a step back._

_He didn't stop. Instead, he came forward, swiping his sharp claws down in a deadly slash. Mother was barely out of reach, and his claws made four deep gashes in the wooden floor._

"_Tyrone! Snap out of it!" Mother backed away from him, shielding me with her arms._

"_Tyrone!" a deep, booming voice thundered._

_Tyrone froze before turning to face the speaker. "Dad?"_

"_What on earth do you think you're doing?" he responded, his voice incredulous. "Why were you trying to hurt them?"_

"_I—I don't know," Tyrone stammered. "I just got angry, and I just reacted… I don't know what happened."_

_Father's hard gaze softened, and he kneeled down closer to Tyrone. "Are you sure?"_

_Tyrone feebly nodded._

_Father looked at my mother and I. "Are you two okay?"_

"_Yes," mother answered, relaxing enough for me to see Tyrone better._

_He looked completely frightened. He started to say something when suddenly, everything started fading away._

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I slowly opened my eyes. Blinking a few times to adjust to the dim light, I looked around only to find that I was back in my prison cell. Sighing, I straightened and stood. I froze as I realized that the feeling in the room was different… something wasn't right. A deadly silence had fallen over the entire place, and the fur on the back of my neck rose as I went rigid.

Walking as far as the chains would let me, I looked around the prison. Everyone was still where they had been when I'd been taken to Tyrone… Remembering what had happened, I was about to call out to Shifu but was stopped by a shout.

"Get out of my way!" someone yelled.

Chills ran down my spine as I recognized the voice.

It was Tyrone.

"But sir, Hēisè De Dúyè commanded that we let no one—" The guard was cut off.

"Do you know who I am?" Tyrone's tone was not friendly in the slightest.

Silence.

"Well, do you?"

"I… no, sir."

"I am the real ruler around here," Tyrone hissed.

I could only imagine the look on the guard's face. Trying to get an angle by positioning myself differently, I could barely see the guard, who was a cougar.

"What…!"

Abruptly the cougar was shoved aside, and Tyrone came into my view. Drawing back into the cell, I started thinking of a plan. I could easily tell that Tyrone wanted me dead by just glancing at him. If I was to have any chance at all in escaping, then it had to be now.

"Master Shifu!" I called, trying to keep my voice as quiet as I could.

"Is that the tiger you were telling me about?" Shifu responded.

"Yes. His name is Tyrone, and he—" I stopped myself as Tyrone stepped in front of my cell and opened the door.

He closed and locked it behind him. "Do you know why I am here?"

"You're here to kill me," I snarled, clenching my fists. I couldn't think of any way I could escape, unless…

He grinned, his narrowed eyes making him look like the vile monster that I knew he was. "Aren't you smart? But first, I will give you one last chance to join me. What do you say, sister?"

I stared at him briefly. "My answer is no, and it will always be!"

He instantly came forward; slashing his claws at me, but I was ready. I ducked and twisted; his claws slashed right through the chains holding my left wrist, breaking them. Surprised, he repeated the action, and I dodged, putting my right leg in the right position so that he claws tore through those chains as well.

Now having an arm and a leg free, I quickly turned, punching Tyrone's face. He shook it off and came at me again; I deflected the blow and swiftly guided his claws into shattering the chains holding my left foot. He roared in fury and started punching and kicking at me; I evaded almost every attack, but his fist finally connected with my right shoulder, and I felt it as his fist dislocated it.

I roared in pain and anger, kicking his stomach and sending him a couple feet away. I hurriedly popped my shoulder back into place, grimacing with pain as I did so.

Summoning my strength, I jerked my chained wrist forward and to the side hard, and I smirked with satisfaction when I heard the thin-ish chain coming out of the stone wall. Swinging the three-foot-long chain around, I watched as it wrapped around Tyrone's ankle. Pulled up and back with strong force, he fell onto his back. Rolling, he seized the chain and flipped it around, sending me into the metal bars of the cell. Hitting them hard, I broke right through them, grunting with pain as I landed on the stone ground.

Shaking my head to clear it, I looked up just in time to get hit forcefully backward as Tyrone's foot connected with my stomach. Quickly regaining my composure, I flipped around and landed smoothly, sliding a few feet because of the momentum.

"Tyrone!"

Both Tyrone and I looked to see Masters Ox and Croc at the entrance to the prison, behind them their army. Relief shot through me, and I smiled gratefully at them. I recognized one of them as the cougar that had been the guard.

"Help me with this menace!" Tyrone commanded them.

"You don't understand, Tyrone," Ox said, glancing back at his small force. "We're not on your side. Knights, attack!"

They surged forward, and Tyrone roared loudly before charging at them in turn.

Seeing that they had Tyrone at least distracted, I hurriedly ran to Shifu's cell and kicked through the bars.

"They have Tyrone distracted. We need to free the others!" I informed him, and he nodded.

"Thank you, Tigress."

We both worked to free the others, but were quickly interrupted.

My eyes widened in shock when I suddenly felt the cold, steel blade of a sword pressing against my throat. Glancing behind me, I easily figured out that it was Hēisè De Dúyè.

"Tigress!" Po, who was now free, called.

"Give up!" she shouted. "Or your precious friend dies!"

Thinking fast, I swiftly shoved my elbow backward and into the lizard's stomach. To my disappointment, she only reacted by pressing her sword harder into my neck. I could feel as it started cutting through my skin.

"There's nothing you can do," she stated, backing up against a wall. "No one can sneak up on me, and anything you do will only result in death. My Knights, my _loyal _warriors, are fighting against your pathetic little army. The Knights _will _destroy China!"

"Not if I can do anything about it!" I roared, slipping my foot behind her ankle and forcefully swiping it forward, tripping her.

Her sword slid deeper as she fell, drawing blood, but I didn't care. I swiftly jumped away from her as she swung her sword, barely missing my leg. She grabbed my chain as she got back up, but Shifu hit her away with such strength that she was sent into the wall six feet away.

Turning to observe the battle, I saw that we were somehow barely winning.

Determination to win filling my mind, I hurriedly dived into the battle, knocking over several foxes as I landed on all fours. Swinging my chain around, I sent ten more to the rough ground. I defeated several more foxes before someone grabbed my chain and flung me into a clear area.

Landing harshly, I got up and looked up to see my brother.

"You leave me no choice but to kill you, Tigress," he growled.

"And you leave me no choice but to fight," I snarled back, getting into a fighting stance.

We went at each other, and I lowered my head under his fist and punched at his face. He dodged, and swept his foot at mine. I jumped lowly over it, ducking at the same time to avoid his claws. I narrowly escaped his claws and twisted, wrapping the short chain around his wrist. Pulling to my right, I forced him forward and kicked him, sending him on a sideways plunge to the ground. He hit the stone headfirst, dazing him.

Looking around, I stared at one of the metal support beams, a plan forming in my mind. When Tyrone got up, I took a running start, jumping up and kicking his chest, which sent him flying backward and into the support beam. He hit is so forcefully that it bent. Sprinting towards him, I jumped on his head as he stood, and, summoning as much strength as I could, pushed off of him with my feet.

I went upward, and, twisting, hit the ceiling with my feet with enough force to crack it. As I fell, I whipped the chain back to it, wrapping it around the top of the beam. Then, using all the strength I could possibly muster, I yanked as hard as I could on it, pulling it from its place.

It only took a second before the stone and the beam began collapsing.

* * *

><p>At the heart-wrenching noise of heavy stone cracking and falling, I stopped fighting and turned to see a terrifying sight.<p>

Huge chunks of the stone ceiling were falling, with Tigress almost in the center of it. I was confused at the fact that she was falling too, until I figured out that it was _her _that must have caused the falling of the rocks.

I was hardly aware that the fighting had stopped to see what was happening; it was then that I noticed that the other tiger, who was where the rocks were falling, was quickly getting up. Realizing that he might get away, I quickly ran over to him, jumping up and kicking his chest. He flew back into the metal beam headfirst, and slumped to the ground in unconsciousness.

Seeing the avalanche of rocks heading toward me, I hurriedly scrambled to my feet and sprinted toward the others. I yelled as I jumped the last few feet; rocks hitting the ground and creating so much dust that it was impossible to see. Thankfully, I didn't feel any hard stone hit me.

I coughed as dust filled my lungs, and looked up as the dust started clearing. The sound of coughing filled the room as the same thing happened to others.

"Phew," I muttered to myself, getting up and looking at the others.

"Are you alright, Po?" Viper asked.

I nodded. Coming to a horrible realization, I stood up as dread filled me.

"Guys…" I forced myself to continue. "Where's Tigress?"

We all turned to the immense mass of rocks, wishing that what we knew wasn't true.

Tigress had been falling right into the path of the avalanche, and there had been no way to alter her course.

* * *

><p><strong>*gasp* Oh no! Tigress, why'd you have to do that? If she's really under all of those rocks… I'll let you finish that thought. But only I know what happened to her! Oh yes, I truly <strong>_**love **_**cliffhangers! They're the best, in my opinion!**

**I'd love to thank my reviewers, _FyreDragon5,_ **_**OscarMerrinoz96, D, Lord of the Tsurani, Miss America of the USA, **_**and**_** Tigressfan12! **_**You guys are **_**so **_**awesome, seriously! You've helped me more than you can imagine! Thank you **_**so **_**much!**

**Thanks for reading, **_**please**_** leave a thorough review, and leave feedback on the chapter! I had only three of five reviewers for last chapter who actually said something about the content of the chapter. I honestly want to know how you guys feel about this story, and what you think will happen and all of that! And besides, do you really think that writers get their motivation by themselves? 'Cause we seriously don't! In fact, it's mainly the reviewers that give us motivation!**

**Oh, and there's a new The Greatest Threat poll on my profile!**

**Have a great day/night, everyone! Thanks for reviewing, if you do!**


	19. Aftershock

**Here's chapter 19! Almost to twenty! Whoo hoo! And wow, eight reviews on chapter 18? AWESOME! Thank you so much, especially since most of them are actually thorough! You reviewers are the best!**

**Thanks to those who reviewed!**

**_SPECIAL THANKS GOES TO: __FyreDragon5, _for inspiring me to write this story, and for a few similar scenes in this chapter. Thank you so much, Fyre!  
><strong>

_****WARNING****_** Don't read if you get queasy at the mention of blood or throw-up!**

**This chapter starts in Po's point of view.**

* * *

><p>I stared at the pile of rocks, devastated. <em>Tigress can't be… <em>I didn't let myself finish the thought.

Finally regaining the use of my limbs from the shock, I hurried over to the mass of rocks. The others followed shortly after.

"Tigress?" I shouted. "Where are you? Tigress!"

I started moving the smaller rocks where I thought she had landed. I felt tears come to my eyes as I continued digging, wishing desperately that she was okay. _She's gone through so much… she's come so far, she can't be dead!_

The others started digging around me, sometimes teaming up to lift the larger rocks. I subconsciously noticed that the battle continued, our side now gaining the upper hand. I hardly noticed, however, as I just kept digging.

"Po!" I lifted my head from my work and looked over at Viper, who had called me. "I found her."

Hope surged through me, and I ran as fast as I could to where Viper was. My hope faltered when I saw the immense worry on her face. When I finally reached her, I looked down to where she was looking, and gasped, dread filling me. Tears streamed down my cheeks as I stared at Tigress' unmoving form.

She was face up, the bottom half of her covered with large rocks. Her arms were slightly above her head, and it was obvious that she was unconscious. What horrified me the most, however, was the fact that blood was profusely coming from her head.

"Master Shifu!" I called worriedly, looking around frantically for the red panda master.

"I'm right here, Po."

I looked down to see that he was ripping some of his robe off and wrapping it around Tigress' head. I felt sick when I saw that it was quickly soaked in Tigress' blood. Staring at her chest, I noticed that it was shallowly rising and falling.

_She's still alive! _I felt like dancing, I was so happy.

"Po, duck!" Monkey called.

"What? Where?" I looked around, only to yell out in surprise and duck down as a javelin sailed over my head. I turned to Monkey, who was only a few feet away from me. "Why didn't you tell me that there was a spear coming at me?"

He rolled his eyes. "Po, I said duck, as in tuck your head down."

"Oh."

"We need to get out of here," Shifu told us. "Help me with Tigress."

We swiftly unburied her completely, and, thankfully, we found that her legs weren't crushed. They were just… very bruised. After he inspected her legs, Shifu reported that they would be fine.

Abruptly we all heard a deep, rumbling noise; the prison shook.

"What's that?" I asked no one in particular.

Master Ox and his small army had almost defeated the other army, but the remaining foxes started sprinting for the exit, shouting and yipping nervously.

"The volcano's erupting!" one shouted, and I froze in horror.

"Who started the machine up?" another yelled.

"How should I know?" a third replied. "We just got to get out of here!"

"Uh, Shifu…" I started.

"I heard them. Let's go, before it's too late!" His voice was filled with urgency. "Po, carry Tigress. Put pressure on her wound, and be careful with her legs!"

"Okay, Master…" I hurried over to Tigress' limp form, adrenaline coursing through my veins.

I picked her up as gently as I could despite the rumbling of the volcano, bridal style. Ignoring how awkward it felt, I started after my friends and master as they headed for the exit. Following what Shifu told me to do, I carefully positioned Tigress' head so that the part of the bandage with the most blood was lying against my arm. I hoped desperately that she would make it.

I stumbled as the cavern trembled even more; I was sure now that the volcano was erupting.

"Everybody come this way!" Master Croc called, heading down a corridor carved into the stone. "This is the way out!"

It was then that things started getting hot. I was soon panting, not only from the exercise but also because it was getting increasingly warm. We were running at full speed now, and it soon went from downhill to uphill. It was getting harder and harder to walk, thanks to exhaustion and the heat, which was almost overwhelming now.

"Are… are we almost there?" I stammered, trying to catch my breath.

"Yes," Croc answered. "But we have to hurry; the lava will reach this tunnel soon, and if we're not out by then we're as good as dead."

_How comforting, _I thought to myself, but it helped adrenaline flow. I pressed on, trying my best to ignore the feeling of blood on my arm as Tigress continued to bleed. I glanced down at her, frowning. She didn't look good. Her face was twisted in an expression of immense pain despite the fact that she was unconscious, and she was barely even breathing.

"Hang in there, Tigress," I muttered to her. "We're almost there."

Finally, we emerged out into the dark night. I turned back to see where we'd come from, only to look up and drop my jaw in awed terror.

We had just come out of the volcano, which looked like it was practically exploding. Lava spewed upward from the top of the volcano, before cascading down in a beautiful yet frightening wave of red mixed with black. Rivers of lava led down from the top of the volcano, and the sight was entrancing; I could hardly take my eyes off of it. Shaking my head, I realized that the lava was steadily and quickly flowing toward us; it was only about ten feet away.

"Come on!" Master Croc called. "Follow us to safety!"

We continued on at a slower pace; now that we were out of the mountain, it was a lot safer. Suddenly hearing the sound of fire; I glanced back to see that the lava had reached the base of the mountain, where the forest started. The trees were catching fire, which the strong wind was blowing toward us.

"Uh, guys?" I yelled. "The forest is on fire!"

"What?" Croc looked back, and his eyes widened. "Hurry up! We cannot afford to lose any time now!"

We started running at full speed, the adrenaline helping me to move forward swiftly. I could already smell the smoke strongly; there was no doubt in my mind that the fire was spreading so fast because of the wind, and it was catching up to us.

"We're almost there!" Croc shouted back to us. "Stay close!"

I tried not to cough, but the attempt was futile. Smoke started filling my lungs, and I began coughing. It wasn't bad at first, but as the wind blew the smoke our way it became a lot worse. I could see fire in my peripheral vision now as is practically ran along with us. No matter how fast we were going, the fire seemed faster.

"Down here!" I heard Croc yell.

Following the lead of the animals in front of me, I quickly ran after them, coughing. I was clearly not the only one coughing; the cougar in front of me had it pretty bad.

We followed Masters Ox and Croc down into a carved-out cave that went into a steep downward incline. We hopped over a small, yet deep ditch, ran past two dark, metal doors, and made it into a somewhat large room. Being the last one in, I turned back toward the doors to watch Ox shut them. Croc lit several torches that were on the wall.

"Is everyone here?" he called.

I looked around for my friends and master, finding that all of them were near me. I heaved a sigh of relief, before coughing again.

Once everyone was confirmed to be present, I looked around the underground room. The ceiling was barely over seven feet off the ground, and the two closed, metallic doors were towards the middle of the long wall, which stretched several yards across. The back of the cave-like room was about twenty yards away from the double doors. The ground was simply dirt, but the ceiling was made of rock and, similar to the prison, had an occasional metal support beam to hold it up. At the back of the room, food, blankets, and other things needed for comfortable survival were abundant. The small army that Ox and Croc had only took up a small part of the room, leaving plenty of space to move around.

Hearing a quiet, weak groan, I looked down at Tigress. Dread filled me as I realized that she didn't seem to be breathing.

"Master Shifu!" I called, starting to panic. "What do I do with Tigress?"

"Let the doctor take care of her," he responded, beckoning a wolf toward Tigress.

"Set her down," the canine commanded, and I obeyed instantly.

Carefully setting her down, the lupine doctor told me to give him some space. Walking a few paces away to let him help Tigress, I spotted Master Ox and ran over to him.

"Where are we?" I asked him, curious and still trying to calm my nerves.

"It's basically an emergency shelter," he answered. "Made specifically in case the volcano erupted by accident, or if someone set it off without telling anyone. We got here just in time."

"But what if the lava gets in here?"

"Did you notice the ditches outside?" he returned.

"Uh… I noticed that we had to jump over one to get in here," I replied.

"Those ditches are deeper than they look. They don't fill with lava very quickly either, because the Knights have made very small tunnels that run from the ditches, so that the lava takes a lot of time to fill each ditch." He gave me a tiny smile. "Does that satisfy your worries?"

I grinned at him. "Yes, Master Ox."

He looked at my arm, and I followed his gaze to my blood-soaked fur.

"You should get yourself cleaned up," he suggested. "Here, follow me."

I obeyed, and walked behind him as he led me to a pool of water, a spring at the back of it guaranteeing that the water was clean.

"Wash up, Dragon Warrior," Ox told me. "You won't see the light of the sun for a few days."

"A few _days?" _I repeated in disbelief.

"The lava flow won't stop for a while, and it's hard to predict when it _will _stop," he responded. "The Knights have forced the volcano to stay in a stabilized state for years. There's no telling how much pressure has built up, and so we'll have to travel far from the volcano to be safe. There's a tunnel that we'll walk through; it leads to quite a long ways away. When we reach the end of the tunnel, we'll be in the mountains that you had to go through."

I stared at him, before shaking my head. "Wow… that's a long way."

Master Ox nodded. "We'll spend the next two days resting, preparing, and healing up. Then we'll head down the tunnel. Master Croc and I will let everyone know; just get ready and cleaned up."

I nodded, and he walked away. Turning to the pool of water, I stepped in it. It was deeper than I had thought, and I fell in with a _splash! _and a shout of surprise. Finding the bottom with my feet, I lifted my head out of the water, slightly annoyed at the fact that I was now soaked. Standing on the floor of the smallish pool, my shoulders and head were the only things above the cold water.

Turning my attention to Tigress' blood covering the upper part of my arm, I frowned and started washing it off, trying and failing to keep my thoughts only on cleaning my arm.

Tigress had looked _awful. _Shifu's 'bandage' had been _completely _soaked in blood; I gagged at the memory. She had hardly been breathing; it being so shallow that I had wondered if I had imagined it because of hope. _I can't lose hope! _I reminded myself, shaking my head to clear it of such horrible thoughts.

Taking a deep breath, I finished washing my arm and climbed out of the pool. Looking around, I found a small stack of towels and grabbed one, using it to dry off quickly. I set the towel down, scrunched up, by the pool and walked away toward the doctor that was working on Tigress.

I glanced with worry at the many small, discarded bandages and towels around him, all of them nearly soaked in blood. I was at least six feet away from him, and he was working close to a wall of the room, so I walked around him until I could see from an angle what he was doing.

The wolf didn't look very happy, and it was obvious that his full attention was on Tigress; he didn't notice me at all. Or if he did, he didn't even as glance at me. One of his large paws was holding a somewhat clean bandage to Tigress head, putting pressure on her wound. His other paw was at her wrist, checking her pulse.

He looked over at me. "How did she receive this head wound?" he asked, his tone making it clear to not hesitate in answering.

"Uh… No one saw it, but we're pretty sure that a rock hit her in the head," I replied.

He narrowed his eyes. Not in anger, but in suspicion. "A rock did this?" He gestured me forward, and I took a deep breath before complying.

He lifted his paw, and I stifled an immense gag at the sight of Tigress' wound. It looked like something had gone into her head, to simply put it, although there was so much dark blood it was hard to tell if anything had really gone _into _it.

I looked away before I had the chance to throw up. "I… I think so."

He covered Tigress' head again, and I looked back at him, still trying my best not to puke.

"Must've been a sharp rock…" the wolf muttered, before looking back at me. "You said that no one saw what happened?"

"Well, there was… too much dust from… the falling rocks… to see," I responded, and then I couldn't stop it.

Quickly turning away and running to a small hole, I unwillingly emptied the contents of my stomach into it. When it finally ended, I quickly ran to the pool I had washed in and rinsed my mouth. Afterward, I slowly walked back to the doctor.

"You would never be a good doctor," he observed, a slightly amused look on his face.

"Thanks, doc," I retorted, crossing my arms across my chest sternly. I couldn't stop a small smirk from reaching my face, however.

Surprisingly enough, he returned the smile. "Your friend is stable for now," he told me, "but keep a close eye on her." His smirk faded. "Tell me quickly if anything happens, good or bad."

I nodded, wondering how the wolf could become so serious so fast. "I will, doctor." I looked down at Tigress', and relief instantly shot through me when I saw her chest rising and falling steadily, if a bit fast.

I looked back at the doctor, who had stood. "Thanks, doc."

He smiled. "I'm just doing my job, Dragon Warrior."

* * *

><p>"<em>Well, look at you."<em>

_I whirled around at the voice, but all that I saw was the forest. Turning slowly in a full circle, I realized that I was surrounded by trees._

"_You're all they care about."_

_I swiveled to face the opposite direction, ready to fight. Again, no one was there. Yet, the voice was taunting me… and it sounded weird._

"_I tried to get them to notice me…"_

_I looked around, searching desperately for the owner of the voice. It seemed familiar, but I couldn't place it when I knew I should've been able to._

"_But they never listened."_

"_Come out, you coward!" I roared, starting up at the trees. Suddenly, they seemed to have faces, and none of them were friendly._

"_You have fears…"_

_I growled in warning. "Show yourself!"_

"_But I don't."_

_It was obvious that whoever was speaking wasn't listening._

"_I know your weakness…"_

_I took a step forward… and pain exploded through my head. Roaring in pain, I clutched my head and fell to my knees._

"_I know what you fear."_

_A familiar noise reaching my ears, I turned slightly to see fire. It was started to consume the forest, and at a rapid pace._

"_I know what you hate."_

_Getting to my feet despite the immense pain, I started running from the fire. A distant, yet potent fear awakened inside of me, and I yowled in pain as a wave of it pulsed through me, emanating from my head._

"_I know…"_

_I stumbled as everything blurred, and fell to the earth._

"…_what happened to our parents."_

_My head abruptly cleared, and I looked up to see a sight that now horrified me._

_Tyrone stepped toward me, anger and intense hatred darkening his eyes. "Wouldn't you love to know what happened to them?"_

_Realizing that the fire was suddenly gone, I looked up at him and stood._

_He walked toward me until his face was less than an inch from mine. "Why don't you remember? You were there."_

_Resisting the strong urge to back away, I narrowed my eyes and growled. "Why couldn't you see that our parents loved you too?"_

_He stepped back, staring at me. "You hardly even remember what they were like. How could you know?"_

_My gaze softened. "Because I _do _remember, Tyrone. _You _are the one who doesn't."_

_He closed his eyes, before abruptly fading away into mist. I tensed as I heard him say one last sentence that sent chills running through my spine._

"_You've been wrong this whole time, and I _will _be back."_

* * *

><p><strong>Oh no! What does <strong>_**that **_**mean? He will be back? Could he mean in a dream or… outside of a dream? But alas; only I know… Heheheh. **

**Just in case you didn't figure it out, that was **_**not **_**a flashback. But more will be revealed in later chapters… and **_**especially **_**in the next chapter. =D**

**I'd love to thank my awesome reviewers; **_**FyreDragon5, Lord of the Tsurani, AnimationGirl, OscarMerrinoz96, Guest, Tigressfan12, Guest, Miss America of the USA, moonlight fire xx, **_**and**_** Duncan-Gwen-Roxx! **_**Whoa, 10 reviews on the last chapter? That's so totally awesome! Thank you people **_**so **_**much! Seriously, you guys are what keep me going!**

**Special thanks goes to: **_**FyreDragon5, Lord of the Tsurani, OscarMerrinoz96, AnimationGirl,**_**and**_**Guest**_**for leaving actual, thorough reviews about the chapter! I'm **_**so **_**thankful to you guys; it's reviewers like you that let me know if you liked the chapter, and what I can do better. Thanks so much!**

_**VERY IMPORTANT NEWS: **_**I'll be going to Girls Camp next week on Tuesday, and then the week after that I'm going camping with my family. You know what that means? Unfortunately, there will be no update for at least two weeks. :/ Sorry, but you'll have to wait to find out more about Tigress' past and what happens next!**

**Anyway, have a great day/night, everyone!**

**7/7/2012**


	20. The Truth

**I'm back from two weeks of almost constant camping! And whoa, the twentieth chapter! Exciting, right?**

**WARNING: This chapter has very intense scenes and blood!**

**Anyway, here we go! This chapter starts in Tigress' POV.**

* * *

><p><em>Fire was everywhere. Smoke filled my tiny lungs, and I started coughing.<em>

"_Hold on, my little one!"_

_I looked up into the face of my loving mother, who was carrying me._

"_What are you talking about?" another voice accused. "I won't let you or her go."_

_The voice belonged to Tyrone._

"_Please, Tyrone! She's just an inf—"_

"_She's just the cause of my problems! Without her, you'll finally pay attention to me! You've never loved me; I know you hate me!" Tyrone cut her off._

"_Tyrone, stop this!" The strong voice of my father interjected, and I watched as he angrily approached my brother._

_The ten-year-old snarled at his father, before striking at him. He jumped back to avoid Tyrone's sharp claws, yelling at the young tiger._

_Hearing something creak, my mom and I looked up to see the timbers of the house weakening; the fire was spreading rapidly. Mom started running into the other room, only to be stopped by falling, burning wood. She hesitated only briefly before jumping over the small pile, and she ran towards a window._

"_I love you, my little tigress," she murmured, stopping at the open window. "Please don't forget it! We will see each other again, I promise!"_

_And with that, she threw me out the window and onto the soft grass, two yards away from the flames engulfing the wooden house I once called home. I cried in fear as her loving face disappeared from the window, and I heard her shout in pain._

"_Where is she?" Tyrone roared._

"_She's safe… from you." It sounded like it was hard for her to speak._

"_Where is she?" he repeated, obviously furious._

_I heard something like wood breaking then, and the entire house started caving in; the fire was too much. A huge cloud of smoke surged into the air as the roof abruptly collapsed, sending ashes and splintered, burning wood everywhere._

_I stared at the pile of burning, charred wood, not entirely sure what to think. I started crying; I knew something was wrong._

_Hours passed; I was still sniffling, and still waiting for my mom or dad to come pick me up and comfort me, like they always did._

_But they never came._

* * *

><p>Her breathing was almost to the point of being regular now.<p>

About a day had passed since the volcano had erupted, and, according to Master Ox, it was still erupting.

Tigress had barely improved; her condition was still critical. The doctor had said that it would probably be a few days before she even woke up. But that didn't concern me; just as long as she _did _wake up, I was fine with it.

I sighed as I continued walking; we were travelling through an extremely long tunnel now, towards the mountains. It was the tunnel Ox had told me about, and we were almost four hours along it now. I was already starting to get tired, but that didn't surprise anyone, including me.

Right now, one of Master Ox and Croc's warriors were carrying Tigress so that the doctor could watch over her, just in case something happened.

A couple more hours passed before we stopped to eat lunch. I sat down and started eating the small meal, which consisted of a few dumplings, a canteen of water that was already half-drained, and some bread. Viper came and slithered next to me.

"How are you doing?" Viper asked me.

"I'm okay. What about you?" I returned.

"I'm fine." She sighed. "I just hope that Tigress wakes up and gets better soon."

I nodded in agreement and continued eating, not having much of an appetite. Seeing Tigress in the state she was in, plus seeing all the blood, just seemed to take the want for food away from me.

"Do you think she's going to make it?" I asked Viper quietly, not wanting others to hear.

She hesitated, making eye contact with me. "She's strong, Po. You know that. She'll make it."

I nodded in thanks to her; hearing her words made me feel a little better.

Soon we were back to traveling. We were walking at a steady pace for several hours, before Master Croc told us to rest for the night. I gladly set up my bed roll, and soon fell into a peaceful sleep.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

We had been traveling for two days. Tigress still hadn't woken up, but her condition had improved quite a bit. Her breathing was almost completely normal now, which was a relief for everyone. Nothing had gone wrong and, according to the lupine doctor, she was quickly recovering.

Nothing else had happened while we traveled. We slept, ate, and, of course, walked. A lot. But Masters Ox and Croc kept us reassured with the fact that we were getting closer to our goal.

Eventually, after a total of three days travel, we finally came to a ladder that led upward. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief; the journey had been long and very warm. Master Croc was the first to go up the ladder, followed by Ox, and soon a whole line had formed, with everyone waiting to get up into the fresh air.

It was finally my turn, and I quickly climbed the ladder, taking a deep breath of the crisp, cool mountain air. I could tell by the immense light the torch shone that it was night, plus the crispness of the air. Then, I realized something. We were in a cave. Not only that, but I recognized it.

Dread filled me, and I quickly glanced around, hoping desperately that I was wrong.

"What's wrong, Dragon Warrior?" Ox asked, giving me a worried look.

"I… I know this place," I answered, knowing now that I was right.

"You do?"

"Yeah… we've got to get out of here, before—"

"Well, it's nice of you to join me in my cave," a chillingly familiar voice growled. There was no friendly tone behind his voice. "I had hoped to not be alone for dinner."

We all turned to stare at the brown bear.

"Niko!" Viper hissed.

"Niko?" Ox repeated, looking the aggressive bear up and down. "Wait, you mean—?"

"The tunnel leads into my cave? Yes," Niko replied, standing on his hind legs. "Looks like you weren't trustworthy after all. I knew you were lying to my leader."

"The truth is already out," Croc responded, getting into a defensive stance.

"I know." He took a menacing step towards us. "You're in my territory, and I'm going to make sure you never see the light of day again!"

Suddenly he surged forward, landing on me and pinning me to the ground. He swiped his long, sharp claws across my chest, and I had no time to react.

I shouted in pain and, as Ox's army tackled Niko off of me, covered the deep gashes, feeling my paws slowly soak. I groaned as I heard someone run up to me, and I wished desperately for the pain to stop.

"Dragon Warrior!"

I recognized the voice as the doctor's.

"Let me see it," he commanded.

I hesitantly lifted my bloody paws from the marks, grimacing with pain and nausea as I saw the cuts; I quickly looked away.

"Ow!" I yelled as the wolf touched the wounds, and he apologized before going back to looking at it.

"I need to clean the blood off so that I can see the wound better," he told me. "This'll hurt."

I tried to brace myself, but I still winced as he started wiping my chest with a clean, wet cloth. He had a bucket of water, and he washed the red liquid off before wiping more blood off of me. Just as I started feeling dizzy, even lying down, he let me cover the four bleeding gashes again to stem the blood flow.

"They're deep, but you will live," the doc reported. "Just let me fix you up here. Tell me if you start having side effects of bleeding out."

"Okay… does dizziness count as an effect?"

"Yes."

"Well, I'm dizzy and lightheaded."

"Okay. Tell me if your feel any worse."

I opted not to watch him as he cleaned the wound fast, and soon a large bandage was wrapped around the upper part of my torso. Even though the front of the bandage was swiftly wetted with blood, the doctor told me that keeping it on would be best. I asked, and found out that his name was Lupin. I also discovered that he used to live in America.

It was then that I turned my attention to the sounds of battle. Looking up, I saw with shock that Niko had injured at least ten more animals, all of which were nearly motionless on the ground. The uninjured creatures were still fighting him, and seemed like they were winning; Niko seemed to have many injuries.

The wolf doctor darted to the hurt, starting with the animal that looked closest to death. Glancing around at the harmed animals, my heart nearly stopped.

Lying on the ground, beside two other animals, was Viper. She wasn't moving, and I could see blood pooling around her.

"Viper!" I exclaimed, running to her.

I felt tears sting my eyes as I looked over her. A long, gushing cut ran along her left side, bleeding freely. Her eyes were closed, and it didn't look like she was breathing very well.

"Viper!" I called loudly to her. "Viper, please answer me!"

She didn't respond.

"Lupin! Viper needs help!" I yelled, looking around for the wolf. I soon spotted him bandaging a rabbit's arm.

As soon as he finished, he ran over to me.

"What's—oh no." He swiftly bent down over her, gesturing for me to give him some space.

I complied, concerned immensely for my reptilian friend. The canine doctor worked fast, and soon Viper's cut was covered in a very long bandage. In fact, there wasn't much of her that _wasn't _covered in bandages, except for the end of her tail and her head.

"Is she gonna be okay?" I inquired, hopeful for a good answer.

"Probably. She almost bled out. Gosh, who knew that a bear could be _this _dangerous?"

"Well, Niko is extremely angry at all of us, especially Tigress for defea—" Realizing something, I hurriedly looked around the cave. I noticed that Niko was defeated; he was lying on the ground unconscious, but even that brought no relief. What if he had…?

"What's wrong now?" Lupin questioned, seeming to be quite tired.

"Where's Tigress?" I kept looking around, but I couldn't see her anywhere. "Where is Tigress?"

Lupin glanced around as well. "Why don't you find her, while I keep attending to these people? If anything's wrong, you know where I'll be."

I nodded, not really trusting my voice enough to speak. Running around, I finally found her, and gasped in complete shock.

"What happened?" she spoke, her voice extremely hoarse from disuse. She coughed.

"Tigress! You're awake!" I stepped toward her position against the side of the cave. I was smiling from ear to ear, but that smile disappeared when she gave me a foreign look.

"Who are you?"

* * *

><p>The panda looked like he was almost to the point of crying. <em>Why is he looking at me like I grew another head? <em>I wondered silently.

"Uh… Tigress? Are you okay?" he asked, seeming to be concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Who are you?" I repeated, sincerely confused. I looked around, surveying the scene.

A huge brown bear lay unconscious, a whole lot of animals surrounding it. They seemed to be discussing something. A wolf was tending to several injured animals. I gathered that a fight had occurred against the bear. Turning my gaze back to the panda, I was surprised to see genuine horror on his face.

"You mean, you don't know who I am? You don't know any of us?"

I glanced around again at the many animals. "No. Why should I? And where am I?"

"We're in Niko's cave… you _seriously _don't have _any _idea who I am?" He seemed baffled and horrified.

"No… you're really confusing me, panda."

"My name is Po. Does that ring any bells? The names Mantis, Monkey, Viper, Crane, Master Shifu, Po… anything? Tai Lung? Shen? _Anything?" _It was obvious that he was getting desperate.

"No… Po, I don't know what you're talking about."

"Lupin!" he suddenly called, startling me.

"What… who's Lupin?"

"The doctor. Lupin! Something's wrong with Tigress!"

"How do you know my name?" I accused, starting to get suspicious. Was this guy stalking me or something?

"Because I'm your friend!" he insisted.

"Oh really? Then why don't I 'remember' you at _all?"_

"Because you have a head injury! You got hit really hard with a really sharp rock, then you didn't wake up for a few days, and now you don't remember any of us!" he explained, but I didn't believe him.

"What are you talking about?"

"You need proof, then?" He gave me a weird look. "… Can't you feel the bandage on your head?"

"Huh?" Sure enough, when I felt my head with my paw, right where it hurt, I felt a bandage. "How…? Are you telling the truth, panda?"

"My name is Po, again, and yes! Wow, you're stubborn." At my low growl, he speedily tried to excuse his remark. "And, uh, th-that's a good thing… a great thing, even! Heheh…" He gave a nervous laugh.

I rolled my eyes and watched as the wolf, the one who had been attending wounded animals, ran up to me.

"What's wrong?" Looking at me, he softly smiled. "Good, you're awake! Now, I—"

"Lupin, she can't remember me, or anything!" Po burst out, his tone urgent.

"What?" The wolf, Lupin, frowned. "Oh no. That means she must have some brain damage or something from the rock… you're sure that it was a _rock _that hit her, right?" The question was directed at the panda.

"I… I think so! I don't know what else it could've been…"

"Will someone tell me what's going on here?" I spoke up, getting slightly annoyed at how they seemed to ignore me.

Lupin faced me fully. "Do you know who this is?" He gestured at the panda.

"He's told me that his name is Po. Why?" I was getting a bit worried now. "What's going on?"

The canine sighed. "You must have memory loss. Does the title 'Dragon Warrior' mean anything to you?"

I straightened. "I know what the Dragon Warrior is! And I'm going to _be _the Dragon Warrior, too."

"Uh…"

The dog and panda shared a concerned look.

"I don't know how you're going to take this, but the Dragon Warrior was decided a year-and-a-half ago. Po is the Dragon Warrior," the lupine doctor said.

"What?" I snarled, standing. Unfortunately, my legs abruptly gave out under me, and I fell. Po grabbed me, stopping my fall.

"Please don't get mad at me again," he pleaded. "Once was enough, trust me."

"What? Mad 'again'?"

"Yeah, you…" He sighed. "You don't remember, but we've already gone through this."

"How can I remember then?" I asked, honestly wanted to remember everything I'd apparently forgotten.

"I... I don't know," Lupin admitted. "A word or two might spark your memory."

"Um… Shen, Tai Lung, Niko, Tyrone—"

The fur on the back of my neck rose. "Tyrone?" Leaning against the stone wall, I slowly got to my feet. "Where is he?" My tone was a little harsher than I meant it to be.

"Uh, he's dead. You caused an avalanche of rocks, and they crushed him… they also gave you that head injury," Po started. Before he could continue, I cut his explanation off.

"No, he's not. He said he will be back…" I murmured.

"What? He will be back?" Po repeated incredulously. "When?"

"He swore that he'll be back."

"When?"

"How should I know?"

"No, I mean, when did he tell you that?"

I paused, trying to remember. "I think… a few nights ago… in a dream."

"In a dream? Oh, then it probably doesn't mean anything," Po said, looking a bit more at ease.

"No," I growled, "it wasn't much of a dream. I swear it was real."

"Oh…"

"We should get some sleep," a booming voice announced. I turned my aching head to see a huge ox standing by a crocodile. I guessed that the ox was the speaker.

He paused a moment before continuing. "Niko is no longer a threat. Let's get some sleep; I have a plan for what we'll do tomorrow."

* * *

><p><strong>Ooh, what's the plan? And what'll happen when Master Ox finds out that Tigress has lost her memory? And was her head injury really made by a rock? <strong>_**FyreDragon5**_**, you could be on to something there… ;)**

**Thanks to my reviewers, **_**FyreDragon5, OscarMerrinoz96, Tigressfan12, Guest, Anotherhumanbeing, Shadowmaster2323, Lord of the Tsurani, **_**and**_** Pennywise, **_**this story has been moving along fast! Thank you awesome people **_**so much! **_

**Oh, and if you haven't already, you should totally read **_**Obsidian Blade **_**by **_**FyreDragon5! **_**Best story ever (in my opinion)!**

**Next update should hopefully be the end of this week. After seeing Brave eight times in the theaters, (yes, 8 times!) I have been working on a new Brave story! It'll be a while before I post the first chapter though!**

**Please review, and have a lovely day!**

**7/30/2012**


	21. Ambush

**Due to computer problems, this chapter came late, and I'm sorry for that. My dad got it figured out though, so here it is! And now that the problem's fixed, I can get a lot more writing done.**

**So, here's chapter 21!**

**This chapter starts in Tigress POV.**

* * *

><p>"So… you remember Tyrone and Master Shifu, but not us?" Po asked me for the fifth time.<p>

Exasperated, I sighed. "Yes, Po. You and the others seem a little familiar, but I don't remember you very well."

Po had been making introductions, told a large ox and a crocodile that I had lost my memory, and had started trying to explain everything that had apparently happened over the past month. Everyone except Master Shifu, who was talking to the ox and crocodile, were seated next to a campfire, as the air was chilly. I could easily sense that winter was on its way.

"Po," Viper gently told him, "I don't think that we can do much else."

The panda looked crestfallen. "But… there has _got _to be _something _that'll make her remember… Tai Lung, Shen, Hēisè De Dúyè, Ty—"

"Hēisè De Dúyè?" I repeated, a spark of resignation igniting. "She sounds familiar…"

Po got excited. "Yeah! She's your rival, a Komodo dragon… she likes to use poison on you."

Slowly, an image of her appeared in my mind. I growled as I started to remember all the pain that she… and an army of foxes… had inflicted on me and my friends. "She has an army of foxes," I stated.

"Yes!" Po cheered. "The Crimson Knights! And she seems to really want you dead, and her army does too."

"I remember that," I said bitterly. "I had a rival in that army…"

"Yeah!" he exclaimed. "And they were all under the command of Tyrone."

I narrowed my eyes. Tyrone. My brother. "He will pay for what he's done," I seethed, anger boiling inside of me.

Po nodded, apparently forgetting that he thought Tyrone was dead. "_Oh _yeah. He's gonna feel the thunda!" He pumped his fist in the air, as if he had already triumphed against the tiger.

His enthusiastic attitude put a tiny smile on my face. Looking around at the other animals around me, I started remembering them more.

"I remember now…" I started, concentrating hard as the memories came back into existence. Suddenly, images of fire and my terrified mother invaded my brain, and I flinched involuntarily.

"Tigress?" Po's voice was full of concern. "You okay?"

"I just… remembered something painful," I told him. It wasn't a complete lie, after all.

"Oh."

I shook my head. "Let's get some rest. Master Ox will tell us his plan in the morning."

And with that, I turned my back to the fire and lay down on my sleeping mat, quickly falling into a light, uneasy sleep.

* * *

><p>I blinked in surprise. First off, she was very blunt and obviously uncomfortable. Second, she had said 'Master Ox', and I hadn't really told her his name. Shrugging it off and hoping that her memory would return fast, I found a comfortable position and fell asleep.<p>

I wasn't asleep long before something gently prodded my shoulder, waking me up.

"Huh…?" I muttered sleepily, wanting to go back to sleep.

"Po," I heard a voice whisper.

Recognizing the voice as Viper's, I lifted my head and turned to look at her. She was wide awake, and gestured with her head over at Tigress.

Or rather, at Tigress' empty sleeping mat. Abruptly awake, I looked around, scanning the cave with my eyes in search for her.

"I'll go find her," I whispered to Viper, and she nodded.

Getting to my feet, I carefully walked over and between people until I came to the entrance of the cave. Looking around, I gazed at the peaceful mountains. The full moon shed enough light to see quite well, and I marveled at the beautiful sight. Turning around, I jumped backward, almost shouting in surprise due to seeing Tigress crouched on a ledge not five feet above me, her fierce, glowing eyes piercing mine as she stared down at me.

"Tigress!" I tried to keep my voice low as I attempted to steady my now rapidly beating heart, which wasn't working very well. "What… what're you doing out here?"

"Keeping a lookout," she replied. She pointed behind me, and I turned to see what she had seen, only to find myself looking at the mountains.

"Uh, Tigress? I don't see anything," I reported, looking back at her.

She rolled her eyes. "You're too low. Come up here, and you'll see."

"Um… I can't climb or jump that high," I reminded her.

She sighed. "Just jump as high as you can, and I'll pull you the rest of the way."

"Okay…" I hesitated, before jumping as high as I could, which was about a foot high, if that.

Tigress lurched forward, grabbing my wrists and hoisting me up onto her ledge. I marveled at how she made it look so effortless. I grunted as I got a foothold on the ledge, and Tigress helped me the rest of the way up. Then, she pointed again. This time, I could see the entrance to a large cave, which was only about two hundred feet away from us. It was lit up with only a campfire, and I gasped as I realized that the animals surrounding the fire were Crimson Knights. Most of them looked asleep, but there were at least ten of them awake, all of which were obviously guards to alert the others in case of intruders.

"Oh no!" I exclaimed, trying to keep my voice as quiet as possible. "Tigress, we gotta warn Masters Ox and Croc!"

"In the morning," she responded. "It's too dangerous right now. I'll keep a lookout and warn them if the Knights do anything suspicious. You should get some sleep."

"What about you? You need sleep too," I accused, folding my arms over my chest.

"I've gotten enough sleep over the past few days, don't you think? I'm fine; I'm not even tired," she insisted. "Now go to sleep. Trust me, Po, I'm fine."

I looked at her, trying to figure out if she was telling the truth or not. She didn't_ look_ tired, so that much I believed. Finally, I sighed in defeat. "Okay."

She helped me get down without hurting myself, and I swiftly made my way carefully back to my sleeping mat. Settling down on it, I rolled around and shifted until I finally fell asleep.

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I yawned drowsily as I woke up, groaning as I stretched. Suddenly remembered what happened last night, I quickly rubbed the sleep from my eyes and got up, finding, to my slight surprise, that I was the last one up. Everyone else was already awake, busy eating or getting packs prepared for whatever Ox was planning. Looking around, I realized that Tigress was nowhere to be found. _She's probably still out there, _I thought silently.

"Morning, Po," Viper greeted cheerily. "Sleep well?"

Her happy mood helped mine to enlighten. "Yeah, it was pretty good."

"Did you find Tigress? I fell asleep after you left."

"Yeah, she put herself on lookout duty. She was… wait, where is she? Has she come back in?" I asked, worry starting to find its way into my mind. What if the Knights got her? I mentally shook my head; no, Tigress was too strong.

Viper looked around. "I guess she hasn't come back yet," she finally answered. "I'll go find her this time. Where was she, last you saw her?"

"She was on a ledge just above the cave entrance," I replied.

Viper nodded in response before slithering away, towards the entrance of the cave. Watching her, I soon got distracted by Master Croc giving me my breakfast.

"So, what's our plan?" I inquired.

"Tigress informed us of the Knight's camp," he responded. "Our plan is to ambush it tonight. With the element of surprise, we should win. Our hope is to finally eliminate the Crimson Knights once and for all."

My eyes widened. "You really think we'll be able to do it?"

A determined expression came to his face. "We must do it soon, or else China is doomed."

I nodded. We had to destroy them, for sure. _We can't afford to lose. _"Where's Tigress now? I don't see her anywhere."

"She's still on lookout," he told me.

"Oh, okay." I turned my gaze to the front of the cave just as Tigress and Viper came in.

"Listen up, everyone!" Master Ox's booming voice thundered, instantly gaining everyone's attention. "We've made a plan, and I won't repeat it, so you'd better pay attention!"

* * *

><p>I glanced over at Po as he got into position behind a bush, before returning to watching the Knights from my spot in a tree, right above the camp. I took a silent, deep breath, thinking about what I volunteered to do. Everyone's direct participation was required; everyone knew that if one person were to disobey the orders they had been given, we were all likely to get captured or killed. We could all easily see the seventy or so foxes huddled in their cave, listening to their lizard master. Ox's army, though many had been killed in the previous battle, numbered about thirty. I could barely hear what the Crimson Knights and their leader were saying.<p>

"Why hasn't Niko sent us the signal yet?" one fox complained, obviously impatient. "I can't wait to sink my teeth into those traitors!"

"Patience," the Komodo dragon spat. "We'll fight them soon, when that bear tells us of their arrival. Remember, Tigress is mine if she's still alive."

I resisted a growl, and took my eyes off of the cave and back to the ground below me. From this huge tree that bent over the rocky clearing, I could drop down almost any and everywhere, which was the plan. The space between the tree and the ground was about twelve feet, which helped. I perked up as I heard the faint signal, and watched as some animals from Ox's army shot arrows into the cave. Instantly, cries, yelps, and shouts of pain emanated from the foxes, and the army ran out of their cave. They quickly noticed half of Ox's army, with Master Croc in the lead, emerge from the bushes across from their cave. They snarled at their enemy, taunting the evildoers to attack.

Hēisè De Dúyè and her army were about to, when the other half of Ox's army, this half with Ox at their head, appeared above their cave on a large ledge, and five of them shot arrows at the lizard's army. They took out about seven of the dogs, and they were quickly alerted of their foes. As Hēisè De Dúyè's army turned to their enemy on the cave, the other half of our army surged forward, starting to cut down the foxes in their confusion. I watched my friends and master battle, before taking position above Hēisè De Dúyè. Just before she could rip her claws across a wolf's muzzle, I dropped down on her, driving her to the ground with my weight. The wolf gave me a grateful look before fighting off another fox.

Hēisè De Dúyè swiftly turned and shoved me off. Her eyes widened when she saw it was me. "You're alive?" She didn't sound happy, and her eyes narrowed angrily. "How many times do I have to kill you?!"

She lunged forward, but I ducked, twisted, and kicked her stomach, sending her into a fox. I quickly turned and faced her, the raging sounds of battle thundering in my sensitive ears.

"Try nine times," I deadpanned, sidestepping her clawed fist.

She didn't respond, instead throwing several different attacks at me. Each attack was filled with anger and determination to hurt me. Somehow, I managed to dodge every one, though I was unsure how. Even so, I was only able to keep up my evasive maneuvers for about a minute, before she decided to use her tail. With a grunt of slight pain and annoyance, I felt her tail whack the back of my knees, immediately sending me to the rocky ground. I hardly felt a large, sharp rock pierce my left arm as I landed on it, as I could only feel the pressure of the rock and the wetness of the wound as it started to bleed.

I paid it no heed, however, and swiftly rolled backwards; Hēisè De Dúyè's curved claws dug into the dirt where my neck had been. I rolled to my feet and stood, swinging my fist in an uppercut as she came forward. My fist connected with her jaw, sending her reeling backwards. I quickly ran at her as she regained her composure, and I jump-kicked her down to the ground. Pouncing on top of her, I pinned her to the ground, growling fiercely.

"It ends here," I snarled.

Grabbing a nearby sword that had fallen to the ground, I raised it into the air and into a striking position. Glaring into Hēisè De Dúyè's black eyes, I saw one emotion that had been void in her gaze every time I had previously seen her; fear.

I thrust the sword down toward her chest, but she dodged the attack by suddenly pitching her head forward, and her head hit my chest forcefully, sending me off her and onto my back. I barely managed to keep a hold on the sword, and I swung it at the lizard as she launched herself at me. She shouted out in pain as the sword sliced across her chest. The wound wasn't deep enough to be very fatal, but I knew it would cause a lot of damage and pain to her.

As she came back at me and hit the sword from my hand, I realized that I was backed up against the tree that I'd jumped from. An idea coming to mind, I ducked under her claws, and they raked deeply into the trunk of the tree, taking out a large chunk of the wood.

"Glad I took out your 'leader'?" I taunted, back to my full height.

"Actually, yes," she replied sharply. "Now, with him out of the way, I can finally kill you."

Hēisè De Dúyè darted forward again, this time aiming for my middle. I saw this just in time and rolled out of the way, allowing her claws to weaken the tree even more. _Just a little more, _I thought, trying to coax the lizard to lash at me again. Finally, I managed to agitate her enough to swing once more.

Her claws easily tore through the trunk, and I knew it was enough, especially with the way the tree was leaning. The huge tree started creaking as it broke from lack of support, slowly at first. Hēisè De Dúyè's eyes widened with realization, and she reacted quickly, soon pinning me against the trunk. I let her do it, however, because she was playing into my trap. As the fall of the tree sped up, I swiftly brought my knee up, hitting the reptile in the stomach and distracting her enough for me to land a hard blow to her chest, sending her backwards with a loud yell of pain. She landed on her back, and had no time to react.

The tree fell completely, and I ducked low to avoid getting squashed under its bulk. Dust was aroused from the ground as it landed, coating the air thickly. I coughed unwillingly, until the dust cleared and I could see clearly again. Looking up and straightening, it was obvious that the Komodo dragon was dead; the tree lay on the ground, the only evidence of the crushed reptile being half of her arm sticking out from under the huge, thick trunk.

It was then that the realization hit me like a brick; Hēisè De Dúyè was dead.

Suddenly noticing that the noises of battle were gone, I looked around to find everyone staring at me, a look of fear and disbelief on the faces of the enemy foxes. Then, with yelps and barks of alarm, they bounded off in different directions, and soon only my allies and I were left in the clearing.

Po approached me, his eyes wider than I'd ever seen them. "You… you killed her?"

I sighed. "Po, there was nothing else I _could _do. You know how evil she was. If we had let her live, she would've raised another army, even if we had defeated the one she already had. It would have been a continuous cycle, had we not ended it."

"I know…" His voice drifted off for a few seconds, before he spoke again. "So it's over now? We've really defeated the Crimson Knights?"

I gave him a small smile. "Yeah, it's really over. With Tyrone, Niko, and Hēisè De Dúyè gone, they have no one to rule them anymore."

A broad smile crossed his face. "Wow… we did it! We won!" He cheered as he pumped his fist in the air, and everyone broke out in triumphant celebration.

I smiled a bit wider. We had won; it was really over. Our enemies were close to gone, with less than twenty Knights left in all of China. We had fought hard, and it was worth it in the end. We were victorious, and this war was over.

And yet, I still felt an overshadowing feeling, and I somehow knew it wasn't over. Something inside of me told me that Tyrone wasn't dead, but I shook the feeling away. I could dwell on the strange feeling later; right now, I just wanted to celebrate our sweet victory with my friends and master, who I considered family.

We had won, it was all over, and we had nothing more to worry about… I hoped.

* * *

><p><strong>*gasp* Is Tyrone seriously still alive? If he is, how on earth could he have survived all of those rocks? And wow, Hēisè De Dúyè is really gone… it happened so fast; I could hardly believe it myself! Please tell me what you think!<strong>

**This chapter came into existence thanks to my reviewers; **_**Lord of the Tsurani, AnimationGirl, D, Tigressfan12, moonlight fire xx, **_**and**_** zteerizle! **_**You people are so awesome, you rock!**

**Tell me your thoughts of this chapter in a review! Have a fantastic day/night, everyone!**

**8/15/2012**


	22. Farewells

**Here's chapter 22 for you all! Enjoy!**

**Due to writers block, this chapter came later than planned. :/ But I conquered it, so I should be able to write a lot more now. :) (Unless it comes back)**

**This chapter starts in Tigress' POV.**

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><p>"Thank you for all your help," Master Shifu told Masters Ox and Croc.<p>

They both nodded. "We were glad to help, despite that we lost so many," Ox replied, a hint of sadness in his voice. "They will be remembered for their bravery and dedication."

"Yes," Shifu agreed.

While they continued conversing, I turned and walked over to Po and the rest of the Furious Five, who were retelling the story of our adventure against Shen to several eager-to-hear warriors.

"We were fighting those wolves, and it was _so _intense!" Po was saying. "We were defeating them left and right, but they seemed to just keep coming! Suddenly Shen was aiming his cannon at me, andit just happened so fast. _BAM! _He fired, but Tigress pushed me out of the way!"

At this point the warriors were completely entranced in the story, and a few glanced over at me in wonderment. I gave them a small smile and continued listening.

"_Everything _exploded! Almost all the ships, and even us were sent into the air, until we all fell into the water!" Po continued, using his hands for emphasis.

"Then, Po used his Inner Peace to defeat Shen," Viper finished.

"It was _awesome!" _Po shouted jubilantly. "I was like 'huaaa,_ YAH!' _and deflected their fireballs back at them! Inner Peace is _so _cool."

"Inner Peace," a fox repeated, his voice awed. "I've heard that only true masters of Kung Fu can achieve Inner Peace!"

"It's actually thanks to Master Shifu that I did," Po admitted, and he grinned. "Now, have you heard how Tai Lung escaped and was defeated?"

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After the rest of our farewells and goodbyes were said, we headed back home. We all knew that we had a long journey ahead of us, especially since we weren't in such a hurry this time. Masters Ox and Croc had given us a lot of provisions. Enough, in fact, to last us probably more than we needed.

The days of travel were relatively uneventful, and Po complained only a little. It didn't take too long to pass Jiānruì-Lóng City. We circled around it, unwilling to relive the bad memories that were made there.

"I still can't believe someone would do that to innocent people," Po muttered, staring at the rubble and burnt wood that was left of the city.

A few of us vocalized our agreement, casting saddened glances at the ruins. I looked at it, and sour memories flooded back into my mind. I quickly turned my gaze away, taking a steadying breath. No one seemed to notice my reaction to the sight, and for that I was grateful. They seemed to be caught up in their own thoughts, and I didn't need them worrying about me more.

Glancing up at the sky, I saw, to my annoyance, that dark clouds covered the distance.

"Master Shifu," I called to him. "A storm is coming."

He looked up at the sky, taking only a few seconds to spot the ominous weather. He sighed, obviously exasperated; we had hoped that no trouble would come on our way back, but it looked like possible danger had once again found us.

"Then we will need to find shelter," he instructed, and we headed for the forest near Jiānruì-Lóng.

It only took us about fifteen minutes to find a cave. It was small, but large enough to fit us all inside. Staring back up at the clouds, I watched them move toward us at an alarming rate. _At that speed it'll hit us within the hour, _I summed up silently. Thankfully though, the speed it moved at would also mean that the storm would pass by fast as well.

Sure enough, the black clouds reached us, and the storm hit hard. Rain soon soaked the ground, turning dry dirt into wet mud as the water came down in sheets. Thunder crackled loudly, and lightning often streaked toward the ground. Some were so far away that I couldn't tell if the bolt had made contact, but I hoped that the tumultuous storm wouldn't last long or cause a lot of damage, if any.

"Wow, that storm is _loud!" _Po shouted over the noise. A thunderclap then sounded, causing the panda to flinch.

"So much for getting any sleep," Mantis commented, his gaze outside as night slowly fell.

"Hopefully it'll pass quickly," Monkey added.

I nodded. "If it's keeping up speed, it should pass soon."

"I sure hope so!" Mantis exclaimed. "I'm tired of being wet."

"I can't fly very well when my feathers are wet, either," Crane spoke up.

"Am I the only who likes rain?" Viper complained, humor in her voice as she smiled at us.

"I never said I _didn't _like it," Po claimed, returning the smile with one of his own.

"I like it too," Monkey agreed. "I just don't like traveling in it." A light flashed, soon followed by thunder. "Or the noise it makes."

Crane and I agreed, and Po yawned.

"I'm tired…" His stomach growled. "… And hungry. Are we gonna eat dinner now?"

"Yes," Shifu answered. He had a small smile on his face as well. "We might as well eat while we wait for the storm to quiet."

As if in reply, lightning flashed again, thunder accompanying it. We were soon eating dinner, laughing at each other's jokes and telling stories.

"… And then he said, 'What are you doing here?' And then Mantis dumped the water on his head!" Po finished, and laughter broke out.

"That pig was always grumpy. He deserved the prank." Mantis chuckled, and Monkey agreed.

"Was he grumpy after that?" Crane inquired, grinning.

Po made a slightly disgusted face. "Yeah. But I never really expected him to change, anyway."

"But the prank was still a lot of fun, "Mantis continued.

A few seconds passed of silence, until Monkey spoke.

"I think the thunder stopped!" he exclaimed, and we all listened for the sound.

I could still plainly hear and see the rain, but no thunder. The water also wasn't coming down as hard or fast.

"Finally, we can get some sleep!" Mantis threw his spiked forearms into the air for effect, before settling down on his small mat and yawning. "I don't know about you guys, but I'm tired."

"Yeah, me too." Po's mouth gaped widely as he yawned as well.

Silence followed exchanges of 'Goodnight' and 'Sleep well' as we all settled on our sleeping mats, the melodic sound of the rain lulling us to sleep.

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I awoke to an ear-piercing scream.

Jolting upright, I quickly steadied my breathing. That scream had sounded familiar…

"What was that?" Po asked, fear coating his voice.

Looking around, I noticed that the scream had woken everyone up. Turning my gaze to the front of the cave, I saw that dawn was breaking. Standing, I started walking outside.

"Whatever it was, we should help whoever's in trouble," I told them, scanning the nearby area. I was also confused as to why the scream had sounded so familiar.

"Yeah," Po responded, getting up and walking to my side. The others soon joined us.

Keeping my ears perked up, I looked around at the trees surrounding us. Eerie silence dominated for several seconds, before it was interrupted by an awfully familiar-sounding shout.

"Help!" someone shrieked, and the memory of one small cougar filled my mind.

"Zhēn!" I shouted, sprinting off in the direction of her voice.

I was aware of my comrades behind me as I ran, but I paid them no heed. All that my mind was on was saving the young cat, and that I wasn't going to let anything bad happen to her. I bolted through the forest, undergrowth blurring around me as I bounded past. Hoping I wasn't too late, I emerged from the trees and into a clearing.

"Zhēn!" I called again, looking around for any sign of her.

A form suddenly jumped out of the bushes a few feet away from me. I prepared myself for a fight, but stopped when I realized who the figure was as she ran to me.

"Zhēn!" I repeated, relieved that she was okay as she skidded to a stop in front of me.

"Tigress! You have to get out of here!" she told me, urgency coating her voice. "It's a trap!"

I instantly turned as I heard something behind me, only to be tackled and pinned to the ground. Panic surged through me as whoever was on me gripped my throat, choking me.

"Tigress!" Zhēn shouted, and I heard my friends arrive.

As I struggled to get out of the grasp of whoever was on me, I finally got a good look at him. My blood ran cold as realization hit me like a brick.

"Surprised?" my brother questioned rhetorically, his amber eyes narrowing. "You should've known that rocks can't kill me."

"Tyrone!" Po exclaimed, and I could see the shock on his face from my peripheral vision. "Get away from her!"

"Why don't you make me, Dragon Warrior?" Tyrone taunted, glancing at the panda. I tried to blink away the black dots that swam in my vision to no avail.

With a loud battle cry, Po charged at the tiger, who quickly reacted by kicking him away. Thankfully, it was enough of a distraction for me to finally pry Tyrone's hands away from my neck. With an angry, breathless shout, I got my feet on his stomach and kicked hard. As I gasped for breath, Tyrone flipped around in mid-air and landed on all fours.

"You'll have to do better than that to even lay a scratch on me," he boasted, getting up and fixated his cold glare on me.

"Yeah, well, feel the _thunda!" _Po yelled, coming back at Tyrone.

He threw several punches and kicks as he evaded Tyrone's, and it soon became apparent that neither was getting an advantage over the other. It was quickly obvious that Po was starting to tire out, while Tyrone was still practically full of energy. The fight remained for only a few seconds longer, when Tyrone finally landed a hit to Po's legs, tripping the panda.

I darted forward, throwing myself on top of my brother before he could rake his claws into Po. I knocked Tyrone to the ground, and we rolled around on the dirt, fighting.

"Your master never taught you everything," he growled as he dodged under my fist. I tried to avoid him as he bent forward, but was unable to on the ground.

I snarled in pain as he sunk his teeth into my shoulder, and I felt my fur there wet with blood.

"He has always been better than you," I seethed, sending my fist in an uppercut into his jaw.

He released my shoulder as my fist made contact, and it took him a moment to regain his composure as he landed on his back. Tyrone glared at me as he got to his feet, only to be thrown back to the dirt by Monkey, who had pounced on him with an animalistic shout.

Monkey quickly jumped back off him before the tiger could do anything, and the primate was swiftly replaced by Viper as she wrapped herself around Tyrone's upper body, especially his arms.

"Wha—?" he started, but was cut off as his fist suddenly hit his face.

Viper grinned as she continued using his own arms against him, until he'd had it. With a roar of fury, he regained control of his arms and grabbed Viper, ripping her off him and throwing her at a tree. I ran ahead of her, catching her before she could hit the hard wood.

"Thanks, Tigress," she said breathlessly, and I nodded in reply. Setting her down, I charged back at Tyrone, who was now fighting Crane, Mantis, Po, Monkey, and Master Shifu.

Tyrone was doing a surprisingly good job of deflecting our attacks, as well as throwing in his own. Still, he was hit multiple times, although he didn't seem affected by it. I could see Zhēn near the trees, a fearful yet hopeful look on her face as she stood several feet away. Suddenly Tyrone darted at her, hitting her against a tree. As we ran at him to get him away, he stopped us by pinning the young cougar against the trunk, his claws at her throat.

"Take one more step and she dies," he threatened, his glare now holding slight triumph.

We glanced at each other, at a loss for what to do. The raw terror and slight pain in Zhēn's eyes alone made me want to tear Tyrone to shreds, simply for causing her such emotions.

Then I saw the new look of determination in her eyes, and, before Tyrone could notice her change of attitude, she shifted and bit down on his arm, hard.

He reacted by growling loudly in pain, and the distraction was enough for us to attack. I quickly grabbed Zhēn, getting her away from my brother as fast as I could. I urged her to hide in a bush, the sounds of battle resonating behind me.

"Stay hidden," I told her, kneeling so that I was eye-level with her. "If he comes too close, try to get away without him knowing."

She nodded, her face making it obvious that she took my words seriously. She concealed herself a little more as I walked away, towards Tyrone. If he was aware of me coming at him aggressively, he didn't show it.

I jumped at him, but he turned and kicked my stomach, sending me back to the ground with a grunt of pain. I growled at him as I got back up, even though the others were already back to fighting him. I narrowed my eyes, watching and waiting for the perfect time to strike. He swiped at his attackers, managing to cut Monkey's arm shallowly with his claws. The primate screeched, clutching his wounded arm with his opposite hand. As Tyrone came back at Monkey, Po hit him away, using his large belly. My brother gave the panda an angry glance, but soon had his paws full as Crane, Viper, and Mantis took on the offensive against the tiger.

"Monkey! You okay?" Po asked, genuine concern on his face.

"I'm fine, Po. Thanks," Monkey returned, smiling.

I turned my attention back to Tyrone, discovering that he was way too close for comfort to where Zhēn was still hiding. Determined to get him away, I darted behind him and kicked him towards the opposite side of the small clearing, successfully pushing him farther from Zhēn.

"You can't fight forever!" Tyrone snarled tauntingly.

"Neither can you!" Po retaliated, clenching his fists.

My brother grinned. "Oh, but you underestimate me. Now, I'll show you my real power!"

He abruptly shot forward, easily swatting Mantis from the air as he tried to attack. I attempted to defend myself in time, but the tiger broke through my strong stance and swept me off my feet, proceeding to send Viper into a tree with a well-placed punch. I got up and threw myself at him, tackling him to the hard dirt. We fought with our fists for a few seconds before he launched me off of him using his feet.

Adjusting my weight, I flipped over and landed smoothly on all fours, skidding about a foot before coming to a stop. Staying on all fours, I ran at him and jumped at him just as he deflected an attack from Master Shifu. Realizing that I was about to land on him, he quickly turned and kicked at me. I dodged it, landing on him and giving him enough of a distraction for Shifu to lay his staff forcefully at the throat of Tyrone. I pinned my brother down, making sure he couldn't move his arms or legs freely.

"What will you do with that?" he taunted, glaring at the red panda. "It's just a harmless little sti—Ack!"

He was cut off as Shifu pressed the wood harder into his neck, starting to choke the tiger. "You have caused enough pain to us, and to others," Shifu seethed. "It is time we end your reign of tyranny."

"How do you think you can kill me with a stick, when even tons of rocks couldn't do so?" Tyrone challenged, his voice strained.

"You underestimate me, Tyrone," Shifu warned, his tone threatening. "You underestimate all of us."

"Do you expect to win? Hēisè De Dúyè will come and—"

"Hēisè De Dúyè is dead," I intervened, watching his reaction.

His first expression was of shock, which swiftly turned into anger. "You killed her?" he questioned, his tone harsh.

I gave him a grim nod. "You're the only Crimson Knight left," I told him. "And soon, you won't be a problem anymore either."

"I'm your brother," he growled. "You would kill your own sibling?"

I narrowed my eyes. "You would kill me in a heartbeat," I pointed out. "Your mind is sick, and the only way you rule is with rigor, hate, and cruelty. Your rule needs to end."

His eyes widened slightly, hardly enough to notice. "I can change."

"But you won't," I retaliated. "I haven't known you for long, but long enough for me to know that you don't even _want _to change."

"Then put me in prison," he insisted.

"In prison you could hatch a new sinister plot," Shifu interjected. "Then you would escape and restart your life in villainy."

"Just give me one last chance," he pleaded. "I'll show you that I can change."

I looked over at Shifu. Would it be right to give him another chance? I knew the possibility of him turning on us was big, but I didn't want to kill someone who might change and use his life for good, instead of hurting others. I could see my thoughts reflected in my masters' eyes as he thought it over. Then, he nodded.

"We will give you one last chance, Tyrone," Shifu told him. "Prove that you can do right, and we will let you live peacefully. But if you break your promise and do wrongly to another, you will be destroyed."

"I'll show you that I can do good," Tyrone claimed, and I got off of him, as well as Shifu.

Still, I thought that I sensed something dishonest in his amber eyes, and I kept him in my peripheral vision. Zhēn came out of her bush, running to me and hugging me. I smiled down at her and accepted the embrace, accidentally letting my guard down for just a second.

Suddenly Tyrone lashed out, knocking Zhēn and I apart. The young cougar screamed in fear as he pinned her to the ground, snarling viciously. He drew his arm back, sharp claws glinting in the sunlight as he brought them down on her.

"No!" I shouted, trying to stop him, but I was too far away to do anything effective.

Then, Shifu darted forward faster than I'd ever seen him, and hit Tyrone with his staff, turning the tiger toward him. Shifu hit several points on my brother's body, and I saw reddish ripples travel over his torso and neck. When Shifu stopped after jabbing his throat, Tyrone collapsed to ground lifelessly.

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><p><strong>*gasp* Did that seriously just happen? Man, even <strong>_**I'm**_** shocked. :o**

**Aahhh, suspense. I just love it, don't you? Heheh, you don't need to tell me your answer; I think I already know. ;)**

**Anyway, thanks **_**so **_**much to my reviewers,** _**Tigressfan12,**__**T02E, zteerizle, Guest, D, and Lord of the Tsurani**_**. You guys are so awesome! Special thanks to **_**Tigressfan12, D, **_**and **_**Lord of the Tsurani **_**for sticking with me for so long! You amazing people rock!**

**Please review and let me know what you think! I look forward to reading your reviews! And keep in mind that school is starting, so it may be a little while before that next chapter's up.**

**NOTICE: This story is actually coming to an end. *sighs* I'm planning about 25 total chapters, and then it's done... but no worries! You can check out my other stories, one of which I'll also be finishing not long after this (Black Target). Still, it's kind of a bittersweet thing... :/ Most of me doesn't want this to end!**

**Anyway, have an awesome day/night! :)**

**9/4/2012**


	23. Return

**Here's chapter twenty three, as promised. Writers block hit me **_**very **_**hard, and caused this one to be late. Anyway, enjoy! :)**

**This chapter starts in Tigress' point of view.**

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><p>"I knew he couldn't be trusted." Master Shifu sighed, remorse evident in his eyes as he stared at Tyrone's body.<p>

I bolted over to Zhēn, bending down to her height and taking her in my arms. I stared at the dead body of my brother, extremely shocked at what had just happened. I shook myself out of it and looked down at the mountain cat in my arms, realizing that I had almost lost her. I could easily feel her shaking, and I knew of the fear that was still present within her.

"Zhēn, it's okay," I told her, trying to calm her down.

I definitely couldn't blame her for reacting this way to what had just happened; she had almost been killed by a ruthless tiger; his claws had been mere inches from her throat when Shifu had intervened. I quickly positioned myself so that Zhēn couldn't see my brother. The last thing she needed right now was to see a dead body; she was frightened enough.

I was hardly aware of the passing time as I held Zhēn close to me, realizing that I now saw her as more than a friend; as if she was a family member. I looked away from her, suddenly aware of the silence around us. Glancing around at my friends and master, I realized that they were all staring at me. They were all smiling softly at me, even Shifu.

Instead of responding to their stares like I usually did, I looked back down at Zhēn. She had calmed down quite a lot; she was no longer sobbing. She warmly turned her gaze up to me, and I gave her an encouraging smile.

"Are you okay?" I asked her sincerely, and she replied with a nod.

"Thank you," she said, and thanked Shifu as well.

"There is no need for thanks," the red panda told her. "He needed to be taken down."

"No, I mean, for everything," Zhēn elaborated. "I'm so glad that I got to meet you all."

"We're really glad to have met you too, Zhēn," Po responded, and we all agreed.

After a moment of quiet, Po continued, a slight hint of sadness in his voice. "So… should we take you home, then?"

"Well… I wanted to ask you something," Zhēn replied hesitantly, obviously nervous. When she paused, I gently urged her to ask her question. "Uh, well," she started, stammering. "I was wondering… if I could live with you."

I felt happy that she wanted to live with us, though I didn't show it entirely. "It would be great if you did, but Master Shifu has the final say in the matter," I answered, and turned to look at Shifu for his reaction.

"I, uh…" He stumbled over his words; this was clearly not what he was expecting. He swiftly regained his composure. "Are you willing to train hard?" he inquired, watching her carefully.

"Yes!" she exclaimed, almost jumping up in excitement as she did so. "I was actually hoping you'd train me!"

I smiled warmly at her enthusiasm, and turned to see the red panda smiling as well.

"Alright, Zhēn," he addressed her. "Let's get back to the Jade Palace now. Is there anything you need to do before we continue heading back?"

She nodded. "I brought a bag of some things, because I was trying to find you guys. Let me go get it, and then let's go!"

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><p>The rest of the journey took a few days, and Tigress carried Zhēn whenever she got extensively tired, which actually wasn't often. Finally, we could see the Valley of Peace in the distance.<p>

"We're almost there, Zhēn!" I told her happily. "You can see it from here!"

She perked up and looked ahead; she had been watching the terrain in front of her feet as she walked next to Tigress and I. Her eyes widened in excitement, and a huge grin spread across her face as she gazed at the Valley of Peace.

"That's the Valley of Peace?" she asked, and I gave her a firm nod in response. Her expression brightened as looked over the Valley, taking in every detail she could.

It looked just as we left it; nothing seemed out of place or different. I let an enormous grin spread across my face as my gaze landed on my dad's shop.

"I'll meet you guys at the Palace," I told the others, and they nodded. I then started down towards my dad's 'Dragon Warrior Noodles' shop, grinning happily from ear-to-ear.

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><p>Zhēn gave me a questioning glance as he jogged away.<p>

"He likes to talk to his dad after we finish a mission," I simply explained.

"Oh, okay," she replied, her smile returning. Then she saw the Palace. At first, her eyes and grin widened in excitement, and then she noticed the stairs. "We have to walk up all _that?" _she asked, her mouth dropping open in surprise.

"I can carry you up, unless you want to walk up it on your own," I suggested.

"No… you can carry me." She turned her gaze back over to us. "Wow, no wonder you're so strong! How often do you have to walk up that?"

I shrugged. "Sometimes every day, if we have to."

"Every day?" she questioned, glancing back at the huge staircase. "Whoa."

"Uh… hey, Furious Five?"

Surprised at the vaguely familiar voice, we all turned to see five foxes… all of them easily recognized as being from Hēisè De Dúyè's army. We got into our defensive positions, and I purposefully moved in front of Zhēn.

"What do you want?" Monkey inquired, his tone far from gentle.

Instead of fighting or even giving a vocal response, they all bowed to us, catching us off guard. When they still didn't attack for a few minutes, we slowly calmed down and moved out of our defensive stances.

"Please," the one in the middle started, "forgive us for the wrongs we've committed. We feel terrible for letting our corrupt leader convince us that what we were doing was right."

All of us were shocked. I turned to Shifu. "Master Shifu, what should we do with them?"

He was obviously deep in thought as he stared at the canines, until he finally spoke.

"You deserve death for the crimes you've committed, and especially for the lives you have taken," Shifu began. "But I can see that your hearts are sincere. You will serve one year in prison, and if you've proven that your hearts have truly turned for the better, then you serve at the Jade Palace and in the Valley of Peace for five years. After that, you may be free to do what you want," he finished.

Honest gratitude passed over their faces, and they bowed again. "Thank you," the middle one responded, giving a small, honest smile.

"Crane, please see to it that they make it to the jail," Shifu ordered, although his voice wasn't harsh.

"Right away, Master Shifu," Crane answered, turning back to the foxes. "Come on."

They nodded, smiling slightly, and left with Crane towards the jail.

"Are you sure we can trust them?" I asked the red panda once the dogs were out of earshot. "You know what happened with Tyrone."

"I know. But I could see and sense their sincerity," he replied.

I trusted him, but I still didn't trust the foxes in the slightest. I knew that Crane could handle them though, and he would call for help if he needed it.

When we reached the bottom of the stairs, I picked Zhēn up and put her on my shoulders. She smiled, and I could tell she liked being up so high. She did live in the mountains before, so I reasoned that it made sense.

We soon reached the top, and I set her down. She stared back down the huge flight of stairs for a moment, awe showing on her face. She turned to look back at us. "That was a _lot _of stairs," she commented, and I smiled before leading her inside.

The young cougar stared and marveled at practically everything I showed her, reminding me instantly of Po when he first arrived at the palace. Noticing that the sun was going to set soon, I told Zhēn that it was time for her to turn one the guest bedrooms into her very own room. She chose the one next to mine, and I left her alone while she emptied her bag and got everything ready for her to live there. She then came to the door of my room, which I purposely left open.

"I'm all settled!" she happily told me. "Can you show me the Training Hall now?"

I contemplated the idea. "How about I show you the Hall in the morning? I have something else I want to show you."

"Okay!" she replied, curiosity sparkling in her eyes.

I led her outside, glancing up at the darkening sky as I headed to the Peach Tree. "This is the Peach Tree," I told her, jabbing my elbow into it hard enough for a peach to fall. It fell into my open paw. "This is where we like to meditate sometimes."

"Really?" She gazed around, her eyes falling on the peach as it fell into my paw. "Whoa! How did you do that?"

"Training," I answered. "You can try, if you want. Just don't hurt yourself."

"Okay…" Zhēn tapped the tree with a tentative paw, and then hit it with her fist, causing peaches to fall around her. One landed on her head. Chuckling, I came closer to her.

She took the fruit off her head, examining it. "How'd you get it to go into your paw without moving it?" she asked.

I responded by pointing up at a peach that wasn't very high up. "See that?" When she nodded, I continued, "If you can manage to hit the tree just right, you can send vibrations through the wood. They'll loosen the peach from the branch, and then you catch it."

I demonstrated the action, knocking the peach from the tree and into my paw. "Now you try it," I encouraged. "Remember; don't hit the tree too hard."

She put on a determined expression, staring up at the fruit. She then turned her eyes down to the trunk by her, and hit it with her elbow. She put her paw under the peach as it fell, and she caught it. Unfortunately, she hit the tree slightly harder than she meant to, and a few more peaches fell to the ground.

"Whoops." She grinned childishly, rubbing her elbow. "Uh, how do you _not _knock down other ones?"

"Practice and patience," I replied. "Do you know why I'm really good at what I do?"

"Practice?" Zhēn guessed.

I nodded. "And a lot of patience."

"Oh." She looked up at the appearing stars. I followed her gaze, realizing that the sun was almost completely set. "The sunset is really pretty," she commented.

I agreed, sitting on the edge of the cliff and inviting Zhēn to do the same. She did, and I was a bit surprised when she leaned against me, laying her head on my shoulder.

"If you're tired, you should go to bed," I suggested, my tone gentle.

"Yeah, but can I stay out here a little longer with you?" She looked up at me, and I smiled.

"Sure," I answered, and she returned the smile.

We watched the sun dip below the horizon, casting a fiery, yet soft glow over the Valley of Peace before the deep blue of the night came over the village. Finally, despite that I didn't want to disrupt the serenity of the night, I carefully aroused Zhēn, finding that she had fallen asleep.

"Zhēn?" I nudged her, forcing my own exhaustion away as she sleepily looked at me. "It's time for bed now."

"Okay," she responded, drowsily getting up as I did the same. I picked her up in my arms and headed back inside.

I went into her room and set her on her bed, finding that she had nearly fallen asleep again. As she shifted into a more comfortable position, she looked back at me.

"Thanks," she said, and I sincerely smiled.

"You're welcome," I replied, leaving the room. I closed the door, smiling and making my way into my room, my thoughts on Zhēn.

I knew my heart had softened, especially towards her, but I was hardly willing to admit it. _She's a kid with a rough past… Like I was, _I thought, before shaking those thoughts from my mind. Lying down on my bed, I stared up at the ceiling. Maybe I was growing soft, but at that moment I didn't care. Zhēn was safe, and she was now living with us. The Crimson Knights were defeated, and some even wanted to turn good.

With these calming thoughts in my tired mind, I soon fell into a restful sleep.

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><p>"Did you guys see that?" I asked the Furious Five, minus Tigress. "I think Zhēn sees Tigress like a mother!"<p>

The others smiled and nodded. We had been spying on Tigress and the young cougar while they were by the Peach Tree. We even saw the tiger master trying to teach Zhēn the peach trick. We had hidden ourselves when the duo had come inside, and were now sitting in my small room.

"Oh, I'm sure she does," Viper agreed, grinning.

"You five were spying on Tigress and Zhēn?"

We all turned around to see Master Shifu as he closed the thin door behind him. We exchanged nervous, shocked looks. Shifu wasn't showing whether he was mad or not, and every one of us knew that was a bad sign.

"I, uh, we…" I drifted off as I tried to come up with a good, fitting excuse, but nothing was coming to mind. Finally, I gave a sigh. "Yeah, we were… Master Shifu," I admitted, waiting for punishment.

"Zhēn sees Tigress as her mother?" the red panda asked, now showing that he was only slightly mad.

"Uh…" We were completely surprised that he wasn't using some sort of Kung Fu ninja move on us. "Yeah. She, um, they were out by the Peach Tree, and we saw Tigress teaching Zhēn the peach move," I answered.

"'Peach move'?" he repeated, a small look of intrigue on his face.

"You know, the one where you hit the tree and a peach falls into your hand. Can you believe that Tigress was teaching her that? _I _don't even know how to do that!" I exclaimed, using my hands for emphasis.

He smiled. "Master Oogway taught me that trick, and I passed it down to Tigress. It seems that she may see Zhēn as her daughter, especially since she trusts her with the knowledge of that move," Shifu elaborated.

I stared at him incredulously, and opened my mouth to say something, but Mantis beat me to it.

"Why haven't you taught _us _the trick? I want to know how to do it too!" he claimed, waving his spiked forearms like he was trying to get someone's attention.

"It is a special, unique technique that has been passed down from one generation of masters to another," Shifu explained. "Tigress obviously has enough trust in Zhēn becoming a true master to pass down the tradition."

"Oh," I replied. "That's really cool!"

Seeing my expression, he continued, "I am still not teaching you."

My excitement drooped. "Oh, come on! Why not?"

"You know why," he responded. "I just explained it."

"Fine…" I soon found another subject to talk about. "So, when will Zhēn start training?"

"Within the next three days," he answered confidently.

I smiled in reply. "Cool!"

"You all should go to sleep," Shifu then suggested.

"Yes, Master Shifu," we replied in near unison, bowing to him in respect.

He left, and we all separated to our own rooms, saying goodnight to one another. I settled on my bed, sighing in content. It wasn't long until I fell into a fitful, undisturbed sleep.

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><p><strong>Awww, hurray for cute moments! I think the main reason why I wrote so much of it is because I'm an aunt now. I actually wrote most of this chapter while I was sitting in the hospital, visiting my sister, brother-in-law, and new niece! She is <strong>_**so **_**adorable.**

**Anyway, I'm sorry for the short chapter. The reason is that I don't know what else to fit into the end of this chapter, and the next part of the story I wanted in the next chapter.**

**PLEASE READ:**** I'm a bit sad to say, but this story only has ****two chapters left****. I want to give a very special thanks to those two that have stayed with me from the beginning. Those amazing people are: **_**AnimationGirl **_**and**_** FyreDragon5. **_**Again, huge special thanks go to you two!**

**Oh, and to everyone that likes this story, _please check my profile for a somewhat important__ poll._ Keep in mind though; no _guarantees. _**

**Thanks also to **_**AnimationGirl, FyreDragon5, anonymous, Tigressfan12, **_**and** _**Lord of the Tsurani **_**for reviewing chapter 22! You guys really encourage and help me continue this story!**

**Have an amazing day/night, you awesome people! **_**Please **_**review****, it means a lot to me!**

**11/17/12**


	24. Epilogue

**Here's chapter 24, the last chapter of **_**The Greatest Threat! **_**Remember to read the bottom AN! It's ****super**** important!**

**This chapter starts in Tigress' POV.**

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><p>"Can we go to the Training Hall now?" Zhēn excitedly asked, showing me her empty bowl.<p>

We had just finished breakfast, and Zhēn had woken up to the gong ecstatic. I turned my gaze to her, smiling. "Alright, we'll go."

She jumped up and down, exclaiming happily, "Yes! I'm gonna see the Training Hall! Let's go!" She started for the door, all of us following closely behind.

She stopped just outside, looking around. "Where is it?"

"Over here," I told her, leading her to the hall. I opened the doors for her, and she ran inside, halting when she wasn't far in.

"Wow!" she said, gazing at all the training obstacles. "It's huge!"

"Be careful," I warned. "These obstacles can be dangerous if you don't know how to use them."

"Okay!" She walked around the contraptions, marveling at them. She stopped by the turtle bowl. "What's this for?"

"We can show you," I replied, beckoning to Crane. He nodded, and we hopped onto the edges of the bowl.

We struck at and dodged each other, balancing carefully as we fought. We weren't fighting hard enough to hurt the other, but I eventually hit him off the bowl. He used his wings to land softly. We then turned to an awed Zhēn.

"Wow!" she exclaimed. "I want to try!"

"Alright," I told her, hopping down and lifting her carefully on the bowl. "Do your best to balance. I'll catch you if you fall."

"Whoa!" she shouted as she teetered, falling on all fours. She swung her tail around, cleverly using it to balance herself. She soon learned that almost constant movement was required to not fall off, unless she spread out over the whole bowl. She smiled at me before trying to jump to the other side, slipping and tumbling into the bowl, yelping in surprise. "Ow," she muttered as she got up, swaying unsteadily as the bowl shifted with her weight. She rubbed her elbow, which she had apparently hit on the hard bowl.

I relaxed when she got up; I'd been worried about her when she'd fallen. "Are you okay?" I asked her, and she nodded, giving me a lighthearted smile.

"Can I try it again?" she inquired, not rubbing her elbow anymore.

"Soon, but we have a few more things to show you first," I told her happily, gesturing for her to follow me as I slowly made my way out of the Training Hall, Po and the other warriors following as well. Zhēn jumped out of the bowl and hurried to catch up.

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I made my way through the Valley of Peace, smiling to those I walked by. When I finally made it to my destination, I gestured to the guard to let me through. He gave me a respective bow and stepped out of the way. I gave him a nod of thanks as I passed him.

"Master Tigress?" one of the foxes said, his tone full of questioning.

"What are you doing here?" another asked.

The third elbowed him. "Show some respect!"

"Oh, sorry." His ears slightly curved back in apologies.

"You three are the ones that were with Hēisè De Dúyè?" I verified, and they all nodded tentatively. "Good." I took a short breath. "I came here… to forgive you."

"What?" they exclaimed quietly in unison. "How could you forgive us for what we've done?" one of them asked.

I smiled a little. "It was hard," I admitted, "but I realized that holding a grudge against you would only hurt me more. So I've decided to let go of what you and your friends did to me and mine."

They glanced at each other, and I could see the relief in their eyes. The first one turned back to me, smiling. "Thank you, Master Tigress." I could easily hear the sincerity in his voice.

I nodded and sat cross-legged on the floor. "So, tell me your names."

* * *

><p>"He's your dad? But he's a goose!"Zhēn exclaimed, and I smiled.<p>

"I'm adopted, Zhēn," I replied, and the realization crossed her face.

"Ohhhhhh," she responded, and Mr. Ping chuckled.

"Are you hungry? I could make you some tofu and noodles!" Ping offered.

Zhēn brightened. "That would be great! Thanks, Mister Ping."

My father led the young cougar into his shop, telling her all of the options and asking what she wanted. I turned around at the sound of familiar footsteps.

"So, how did it go?" I questioned, referring to her visit to the foxes in prison.

Tigress smiled. "It went much better than I thought, honestly. They show sincere remorse for what they've done, and it was easier to forgive them than I thought it would be."

"Great!" I congratulated.

She nodded in agreement. "How have things gone here?"

"Really great," I answered. "Zhēn really loves the Valley of Peace!"

As if on cue, Zhēn called from the kitchen. "Are you guys going to come in and eat too?"

I chuckled. "We're coming!"

* * *

><p>"What do you think of it, Zhēn?" I asked the little mountain cat.<p>

"It's beautiful!" she replied instantly, her eyes wide and lit with wonder.

We stared out at the sun as it set, its amazing rays of light and color stretching across the sky. I had made sure that we got the best view of it, which was from where the sacred peach tree sat rooted. We could easily see every hue of the orange, pink, red and everything in between from where we sat.

"Tigress?"

I turned to look at her. "Yes?"

She grinned. "I'm so glad that I met you and your friends. Thanks for letting me live with you!"

"It's our pleasure, Zhēn," I told her earnestly. "And we're glad to have met you too."

She scooted towards me and gave me a huge hug, and it only took a few seconds to overcome my mild shock. Smiling and knowing that Zhēn would always be a part of our family, I happily hugged her back.

* * *

><p><span><strong>The end!<strong>

**Wow! I can hardly believe it myself. This story has come to an end!**

**I sincerely apologize for the lateness of this short chapter. Writer's block is so frustrating!**

**I hope that you all have enjoyed this Kung Fu Panda story. As a final disclaimer, I own none of this! (except for my OC's. If you want to use them, please get my permission first!) I want to honestly thank all of those who have ever reviewed this story! There are too many to name right now, but you awesome people know who you are. Thanks for your support! You've helped me so much!**

**Okay, now for the really important stuff!  
><strong>**I have thought it over a **_**lot**_**, and I have decided to write a sequel! A lot of people want one, and I'm excited to write it! I have tons of ideas for it, but I need your help with one thing. I have a poll on my profile page that's really important! I really need your honest participation and opinion, mainly because the poll is on something that I'm having difficulty with deciding. Thanks in advance if you vote!  
><strong>**Also, I'm going to do a slight revision with each chapter of **_**The Greatest Threat. **_**Don't worry; you don't have to reread the entire story! I'm just doing this so that this story can reach its full potential. :)**

**Bye for now, and thanks for reading and everything, guys and gals! Please review!**

**4/10/13**


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